Similar ideals, diferent methods
by davido747
Summary: The Yggdmillenia couldn't find the catalyst to summon Chiron, so they stole one of the Magus Association's catalysts. With that, they brought King of Fakers to the Great War of the Holy Grail. There was already a certain person who wants to save humanity, and now they brought the hero who wants to save everyone. Both are fated to fight for their dreams.
1. Prologue

**We meet again people. I bring here the prologue of one of the stories I thought up for King of Fakers. For people who are wondering, who is this King od Fakers? It's an 'OC' I created. Its origin is explained in my first story, _King of Fakers: saving them all_. I recommend reading it so you understand the character and his decisions, but it's not obligatory. The only thing is that you could possibly get lost in one of the scenes. And, for those who read my previous stories, yes, this King of Fakers is after them. In this prologue there are several references to it.**

**The title and summary of the story is a reference to the conflict of ideals between King of Fakers and Amakusa Shirou.**

**Anyway, let this new story begin.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own any rigth over Type-Moon or the Fate franchise.**

* * *

As soon as I was summoned, my mind was saturated with information provided by the Holy Grail. I began to analyze it as I let my body kneel and recite by itself the words to formalize the contract with the magus who would be my master.

I was summoned in Romania, in the 21st century, as the servant Archer of Black of the Great War of the Holy Grail.

Unlike the previous war, whose memories in my mind are very blurred, this time there were fourteen servants divided into two factions, red and black. The black faction, to which I belonged, was formed by the family of magus Yggdmillenia, while the red faction was formed by the rest of the Magus Association.

I don't know which one is worse. Again, I get involved in meaningless bloodshed again.

I was standing in what looked like a throne room of a medieval castle. I could feel the presence of five other servants, allies I suppose, two of whom were reciting the same words as me and a third was growling.

With the speech over, I raised my head and took a look at those present in the room. Before me stood two people, one of whom was a servant sitting on a throne. This was an elderly man with white mane and beard with a slight shade of yellow. His skin was pale, on a level that seemed sickly, and he wore a black suit with golden details typical of nobility.

The person next to him, presumably his master, was a middle-aged man with a black mane tied in a ponytail and brown eyes wearing a white suit with golden trimmings.

This was the first to speak. "King, they are the servants summoned by us. That is, your subjects." After saying that, he stepped aside and bowed.

The servant nodded and rose. "Those who have responded to the call of the Holy Grail, first you must do your duty as part of the black faction." His voice was charismatic. The man should have been a King during his lifetime.

His master then continued the speech, raising his hand forward.

"With your convocation, we, the Yggdmillenia, have entered into a battle in which we cannot retreat. However, when the battle is over, those who have survived as masters will be guaranteed an infinite honor! You have nothing to fear, because we already have the Great Grail!"

After that motivating speech, the room lit up. The newly summoned servants got up and I watched the other people in the room.

At my side were the other three servants summoned. One of them was a tall, muscular man with tanned skin, long silvery hair with a few black tufts and green eyes. He was wearing a tight black suit that showed off his chest and silver armor on top. Bright green lines could be seen on his chest, and on his back he carried a large sheathed sword.

The second servant was a girl with red hair that covered her eyes and wore a sort of wedding dress. From the mechanical prostheses all over her body, she even had a golden metal horn on her forehead, I could tell she was some kind of mechanical doll. Her weapon was a mallet that ended up in a brown ball.

And finally, the other servant who was recently summoned was a... girl? I could not identify 'her' gender. 'She' had pink hair tied in a long braid tied with a pair of black ties and lilac eyes, and wore a black dress with a short skirt and long stockings, covered with a white and gold armor and a long white cape. On 'her' hip was a short sword sheathed with colors to match 'her' armor.

Behind us were four magus, our masters I guess. They all wore the same white suit with gold accents. The first was a chubby middle-aged man with blond hair and mustache, followed by a voluptuous woman with black hair tied to a ponytail and green eyes, and a couple of similar teens.

The first was a boy with brown hair and green eyes who wore glasses and seemed nervous due to how he was sweating. The second was a girl had the same color of hair and eyes as the boy, and seemed not to have mobility in her legs as she was in a wheelchair.

Through our bond I noticed that she was my teacher, and I was about to approach her when the servant with indefinite gender raised 'her' voice to draw everyone's attention.

"Let's introduce ourselves!"

We all looked at 'her' with questionable expressions and 'she' proceeded to explain 'herself'.

"Those of us who were summoned must present ourselves. We are now allies, right? Then, then, if everyone will open up to each other, it will improve our union. So, my name is Astolfo,Charlemagne's twelfth Paladin . I am a Rider. It's a pleasure."

Throughout his speech he made exaggerated and bizarre gestures. At least I could find out he was a man, and it spared me the need to discover his identity through his noble phantasm.

Then, after taking a look at all of us, he jumped at me and stared at me less than two feet ahead of me.

"What about you?"

A little stunned by the situation, I turned to look at my master as I raised an eyebrow. She nodded, after all, sooner or later she was going to ask me my identity.

This whole presentation thing is fine, but how can I introduce myself if I don't even remember my name?

But, seeing as I was summoned by a stereotypical magus group, I guess it doesn't matter how I introduce myself. I'm gonna end up getting on bad with them anyway.

I sighed resigned and introduced myself. "I am an Archer servant. It seems that you drew the short straw, you have summoned a nameless entity."

The whole room was silent. The servants looked at me incredulously, and the masters' reaction varied.

My masters had a mortified expression, and the boy next to her looked at her with a mixture of bewilderment and concern. The blond guy was about to burst into laughter and the woman was covering her mouth to hide a giggle.

The two guys who had given the opening speech only looked at me with indecipherable expressions.

"But, that's impossible! There can't be a heroic spirit that has so little fame that his name is not remembered!" The first to break the tense silence was Astolfo.

"Well, the legends refer to me as King of Fakers. You can call me whatever you want."

The servants showed an even more confused look. I suppose my condition as Counter Guardian makes it difficult for them to identify me.

The blond guy couldn't take it anymore and started laughing. "I thought your brother was the incompetent, Fiore, but I see that's something that runs in the family!",

Under normal circumstances, I wouldn't mind being belittled. But, to see my master look away totally embarrassed and distressed bothered me a little.

I squinted and pointed at him with some murderous intent. The effect was immediate. He stopped laughing and his face paled.

"Just because I don't remember my name, that doesn't mean I'm weak."

Apparently, the pressure I exerted on the blond magus leaked into the room and the tension in the environment increased.

The tall servant with the great sword, presumably Saber, stood guard, and the servant in a wedding dress began to growl at me.

Finally, the authoritarian voice of the servant sitting on the throne interrupted the situation.

"That's enough, Archer! He already understood your point. As for your identity, I don't care if you don't remember your name as long as you prove yourself on the battlefield."

I simply nodded and dropped the murderous intent.

The mood calmed a bit, and Astolfo's pale face regained its life. Then this one took my hands and shook them.

"Nice to meet ya anyway, Archer!"

Without giving me time to reply, he practically gravitated towards the servant dressed as a bride, presumably Berserker, and asked her about her identity. She did not respond either because she did not want to or because she could not, and because of the insistence of Astolfo, her master, the boy resembling my master, introduced her as Frankenstein.

Saber's turn came, but his master ordered him not to speak and he managed to convince the head of the family that it was just to make his job easier.

Obviously that were just excuses. The guy just didn't want to reveal the identity of his servant to have an advantage in the second phase of the war, where the survivors of the winning side fought each other.

What a pity that a mere glance at the sword of Saber revealed his identity to me. The sword was called Balmung, the Phantasmal Greatsword Felling of the Sky Demon, the sword that originated from Gram, which in turn originated from Merodach.

Therefore, its owner was none other than Siegfried, the dragon-blooded knight who killed the evil dragon Fafnir and bathed in its blood. A very famous and powerful hero, as expected of the servant Saber.

Still, his identity provided me with a weak spot in case I had to face him in the future.

Then it was the turn of the servant sitting on the throne to present himself.

"We will destroy the Red Servants! I expect much from you, honourable heroes! My name is Vlad III! To fulfill my wish, the desire of my people, swear now that you will bring victory."

I knelt beside the other servants to follow the current. It was the only thing I could do until I discovered the reason why Alaya allowed my invocation to this war.

Considering the previous occasion, there was a possibility that the Grail was corrupt, but I can't be entirely sure until I check it out.

The meeting ended and each pair of master and servant went their own way.

I accompanied my master on a brief tour of the castle, as she introduced me to the other members of the Yggdmillenia family and I familiarized myself with the place. In the end we ended up in her room, and she went to sleep since it was already late at night.

The next morning, she and I served ourselves a tea and she formally introduced herself.

"Again, I am your master, Fiore Forvedge Yggdmillenia."

"My pleasure." Socializing was never one of my strengths.

"It was true that a union was established during the ritual."

"That's right. Apart from sustaining my existence, our bond is fundamental to communication."

"IOh, right. Since I didn't get the chance before, I'd like to thank you for standing up for me yesterday."

"You don't have to thank me, master. Defending the honor of our master is one of the duties of a servant."

I will admit that at least I was lucky with the master who summoned me. Fiore seemed like a calm and gentle girl, far from the typical twisted magus.

"Still, I'd like to ask you if it's true that you don't remember your name. According to Prince Darnic, the catalyst we used to summon you was one of the most protected in the Clock Tower."

"I know what you're thinking. And no, not remembering my name was not due to a failure during the invocation. That's because of personal circumstances. My name, along with most of the memories of my life, have been forgotten. But that will not affect my combat capabilities, master."

"All right then. I'll trust you to bring me the victory, Archer." Fiore showed me a gentle smile after her speech.

But first of all, I needed to do one last check.

"I'd like to ask you something, Master."

"What is it?"

"Are you absolutely sure you want to risk your life and participate in this bloodshed, even if it means fighting your younger brother, Caules?"

Her gentle expression passed into a full of determination. "Don't worry. I am more than ready for this. I am going to win."

I'd have to see if her resolve wavered or not during our first real battle, but still, her resolve was real.

Moments later, we heard several explosions coming from the land outside the castle. It was Caules testing the power of his servant.

From the way Fiore's face lit up, it looks like the view had given her an idea.

"Would you mind giving me a demonstration of your power, Archer?"

Now, that question was complicated. My real noble phantasm and my reality marble were out of the question. The first cannot be used for trivial matters, and the second tends to provoke unpleasant reactions in magus.

Weapons like Caladbolg II are also out of the question. I don't want to destroy the castle either.

"Well, my noble phantasm is complicated to explain, and can only be used strictly on certain occasions. But I can assure you that I have a vast arsenal at my disposal. Above all, the best I am are swords."

My last sentence seemed to confuse her. "Swords? But aren't you a Archer servant?"

"Swords can also be fired."

To illustrate my point, I opened one of the windows facing the outside and traced my bow along with a nameless noble phantasm. I placed the hilt of the sword on the rope and pulled it as I altered the sword to make its shape more aerodynamic. I performed the process slower than normal so my master could see it.

I pumped prana into the 'arrow' and released the rope. The force of the shot made the curtains move, and it almost threw the teapot off the table if it wasn't for Fiore catching it.

The 'arrow' hit the head of one of the golems that Caules was using to practice with his servant and exploded, completely destroying the golem.

Upon seeing the scene, Fiore put on a face of awe. "And how many of those can you shoot?"

"Well, that's what I usually call 'light ammunition' so its cost is very cheap. I have much more powerful weapons, but it would be better to save them for combat."

She nodded slightly stunned and we continued to drink tea.

* * *

In the office of the head of the Yggdmillenia family, there was this one, Darnic Prestone, and his servant Lancer. This one was enjoying a high quality wine offered by his master.

"What do you think are those who did not avhieved their goals?" The servant asked his master after finishing his glass of wine.

Darnic answered as he refilled his glass with wine. "Well, I suppose some failure like me. They are human accidents. They never had enough talent. But, this time it's different. We brought Astolfo, twelfth paladin of Charlemagne, who is famous for each of his adventures. Cabaristo, master of the iconic Alquevon. The monster that the great scientist Victor Frankenstein created. The great dragon-slayer hero who took down Fafnir all byhimself, Siegfried. And our Lancer, Vlad III."

"If we would had them, that terrible event and that corrupt king would not have appeared. But we must think of the present. I will give they ample freedom to defeat the red faction."

"Thanks, my Lord."

"All that's missing is Assassin."

"Jack the Ripper. The legendary serial killer who was famous a hundred years ago. Very soon he will arrive with his master."

"And what do you think of our Archer, King of Fakers? He's quite an enigma to me. Even though he revealed his identity, I can't identify any hero with that title."

"It also seems strange to me, my Lord. The catalyst we used to summon it was one of the most guarded by the Clock Tower. In fact, it was the Barthomeloi family themselves who guarded it. I never spent much time in the Clock Tower, but I still heard rumors that this hero fought side by side with the Barthomeloi heir to protect Britain long ago."

Lancer nodded as he pondered his thoughts about the mysterious hero.

* * *

At the same time, the mercenary Kairi Sisigou, a tall man of Eastern descent, brown hair and a scar on his right eye, was heading for a church in Sighisoara accompanied by his newly summoned servant Saber.

This was a knight of short stature fully armored with silver and red armor, and a helmet with horns.

When they entered the church, they found a man kneeling in front of the altar, apparently praying. He had white hair combed upwards, ochre-colored eyes that looked golden, and tanned skin. He wore the typical black priest outfit.

isigou was the first to speak. "I promised to come here, but I guess you called me."

He seemed a bit uncomfortable. The place conveyed an ominous feeling, and although Saber did not detect any other servants, he was also alert.

The priest stood up and answered him as he turned to look at him. "Nice to meet you. This time I will be the supervisor. My name is Shirou Kotomine." At the end of his presentation, he showed a gentle smile.

"Sisigou Kairi. I suppose you've already heard about me."

The priest approached him until he was a few meters away. "And your servant?"

The necromancer did not respond, but to his surprise, Saber materialized at his side. Before he could reprimand him, this one spoke.

"Something is off. Let me stay, master."

Sisigou decided to rely on his servant's intuition and let it go. Meanwhile, Shirou showed an expression of bewilderment as he looked at Saber of Red, but finally returned to his gentle expression.

"Then, also I."

After saying that, a beautiful woman with long black hair, yellow eyes and pointed ears materialized beside him. She wore a luxurious red and black dress with golden details that left her shoulders uncovered.

"Assassin of Red, Semiramis. It is pleasure, Sisigou."

The presence of the woman made Saber stand on guard and materialize in his hand his sword, a silver blade of wide blade and red hilt.

His master had to stop him, and he complied with his grumbling.

"Well, let's exchange information."

After that, both masters sat on different church benches and Shirou proceeded to explain to him the information they had about the black faction.

"It seems that the black faction has already gathered. Their Lancer is Vlad III, the impaler. One of the most dangerous servants among their servants."

"So they summoned him, huh?"

"The strength of a servant depends on his summoner. For example, here in Transylvania he was summoned as a hero and not as a vampire. Furthermore, we know the possible identity of another of their servants."

"What do you mean by that?"

"A few weeks ago, one of the Clock Tower's most guarded catalysts was stolen by the Yggdmillenia. With it could be summonedKing of Fakers, the hero who saved Britain from demonic beasts along with the Barthomeloi family. Some even theorize that his legend served as a prototype for the legend of King Arthur. His legend is not well known and many details are missing, but it is said that he was able to achieve the impossible."

Hearing that, the gears in Saber's head began to spin. Her mother once spoke to her about the hero called King of Fakers. According to her, Merlin trained his 'father' with some inspiration from him. He drew the sword on the stone long before his father, and because of that, he was given the title of King.

If she could defeat him in combat, she'd be one step closer to her 'father'.

"And our servants?"

"They are very good, at least at their look."

Sisigou took a look at Assassin's body and nodded. "You're right."

She turned to look at him and Saber, and showed a mischievous smile. However, Saber was so engrossed in her thoughts that she ignored it.

Shirou continued, ignoring what had just happened. "We also confirm that servant Ruler was summoned."

"A fifteenth servant?"

"Ruler is the one who leads the war. It is obvious that on this occasion it would be no exception."

"I don't want to run into that."

After that, Sisigou rejected Shirou's proposal to present it to the other teachers of the Red faction. He preferred to work alone, and the priest gave him a bad feeling.

Saber agreed with that. Assassin gave a similar feeling to her mother, and that wasn't very funny for her.

Both, after buying casual clothing so that Saber could physically walk next to their master, left for Trifas, the city where the Great War of the Holy Grail would unfold.

* * *

It was already dark when Lancer called us for a meeting in the room where we were summoned.

In the afternoon, Fiore gave me the freedom to explore the castle further. If there was an emergency, I needed to be able to get anywhere inside the castle as quickly as possible.

My exploration led me to the basement, where I discovered all the racket they had assembled to massive produce homunculus. It seemed strange to me that there were so many homunculi in the castle who served as serfs, but this was ridiculous.

There I met our Caster, a guy wearing a blue robe that covered his body completely and a golden mask that hid his face. He and his master, a blond boy who looked even younger than my master, were looking to produce a homunculi that would serve as a prana battery for his noble phantasms.

The mountain of bodies in one corner of the room gave me an idea of what was going on with the 'failed attempts'. It certainly was repugnant.

Under normal conditions, Caster would already have a few noble phantasms piercing his chest and I would be releasing these innocent beings, but right now I couldn't do that.

I would be branded a traitor, and I would have to fight not only the red faction, but also the rest of the black faction. And besides, it would cause a lot of trouble for Fiore.

I would have to handle this very carefully.

When Fiore and I arrived in the room in question together with the other maters and servants, we could see that an image was projecting on the wall.

This was the city of Trifas, the closest location to this castle, and therefore a location under our domain.

Lancer's deep voice interrupted the room in expectant silence. "As you can see, I called you here because we detected an enemy servant in the city of Trifas."

In fact, the image showed two people walking through the night streets of the city.

My surprise was great when I noticed one of the people. She was a short girl with blond hair tied in a ponytail and emerald eyes. She was very much like Nero.

However, there were some differences. Although her clothes were equally revealing and the same color scheme, her hair was more agitated, her port and bearing were not graceful and majestic.

Still, I had trouble keeping my usual poker face and not showing my surprise. And for some reason I felt it wasn't the first time something like this happened to me.

The tall guy who wore a black suit and sunglasses even at night had to be the master of that servant.

"We have already sent a group of homunculi and golems to intercept them. You shall watch the fight to analyze our enemy."

A few seconds later, both were on guard when they were surrounded by the homunculus and golems Lancer mentioned.

The servant materialized a silver armor that covered her entire body, helmet included, and a silver sword. I doubt I'll need to say that she was Saber of Red. Unfortunately, being a projected image, I couldn't discover her identity, and by now, it was clear that she wasn't Nero.

Her master pulled out a two-barrel shotgun and took cover. The fight was more of a one-sided massacre.

The servant quickly eliminated the golems with an unorthodox fighting style that was based solely on overwhelming the opponent with brutal and powerful attacks, with no strategy behind them. She looked more like a Berserker than a Saber. Still, her power was undeniable. The servant repeatedly used what I recognized as prana bursts without showing any signs of exhaustion.

Her master's fighting style was equally unconventional. Using his weapon with enchanted ammunition and some mystical codes in the form of organs, he dispatched the homunculus quickly and efficiently.

On that scene, Lancer showed a glimmer of concern. "It seems we underestimated them. Can you defeat her?" His question was addressed to our Saber.

He nodded without dropping his stoic face.

After that, the subject changed to the fact that the servant Ruler had already been detected arriving at Trifas. Darnic decided to send one of us to find him and try to win his favor. That, or at least stall the red faction in case you try the same thing.

In the end it was decided to send Saber as he was our most powerful servant, and he and his master left immediately.

The meeting ended, and I accompanied Fiore to her room to sleep. I spent the night thinking about the possible reason for my invocation and planning how to free the homunculi at the basement.

Or that's what I would have done, if someone hadn't knocked in the middle of the night.

What I found when I opened the door was Astolfo with an ironic smile, and carrying one of the homunculi that was in the basement, unconscious and half naked.

I couldn't do anything but raise an eyebrow.

"Well... Could you help me with this, Archer?"

His request did not clarify anything about what was going on. I would have to ask him further to find out.

After checking that Fiore had not woken up, I sighed and replied. "Okay, but, first of all, let's go to a more discreet place."

I could practically see how his eyes lit up and I had to stop him before he made a fuss about trying to thank me. I took him to a room I found in the afternoon, which no one seemed to use.

We laid the homunculus on a bed there and Astolfó explained to me that he was found lying on the floor of the semi-unconscious corridor, and that he asked for help.

I checked his body for structural analysis, and I found out why he had a fever and probably how he managed to escape from the tobe they were keeping him in.

"His magical circuits were suddenly activated and almost out of control. In addition, he is tired."

"Tired?"

"It's probably the first time he's made a physical effort since he was born. As they created him to be a magic battery, he was confined in one of those tubes until now."

"I see. So he's like a newborn."

With that sorted out, I changed the subject to check Rider's intentions. "Why did you help him, Rider?"

"Because I wanted to do it." His response was swift and without any hint of doubt. I can say that he was not lying and had no hidden intention.

"You know Caster's probably looking for it, right?"

"I don't care about it!" His honesty was genuine. We were similar in that aspect.

"And why did you come to me from all people?"

"Because I had the feeling that you would be the only one who would help me."

"Is that so? I doubt I gave you that impression when we met."

"Call it intuition. Even if you try to hide it with that stoic expression, deep down you're a good person. Besides, you decided to help me without even knowing what was going on, so I was right, don't you think?"

"Well, that's how I am. I always thought that helping others isn't bad. Anyway, do you plan on taking the responsibility to the end?"

"Yeah. I will help him until I am satisfied. I will not abandon him." With that answer I could not help but smile.

"Very well then. I will help you in any way I can. I will go back to my master but I will come and check his condition. I don't think anyone's coming here, but just in case, don't open up to anyone but me."

"'kay!"

With that said, I left for Fiore's room.

* * *

The next morning, when I went to check the condition of the homunculus, he was already awake.

As soon as I materialized next to the bed he was sitting on, Rider introduced me noisily.

"Oh, this man is Archer. He also helped you. Although he doesn't remember his name, he is a good person."

I had to resist the urge to put my hand on my face. "Did you have to say that I don't remember my name, Rider? We're supposed to hide our identity."

"Woops, my bad. Tehe!" When he said that he hit his head gently with his left fist, winked at me and pulled out his tongue.

I could not resist any longer and put my hand in my face. This man is hopeless.

"Archer and Rider." Apparently, our presence disturbed him a little.

"Anyway, let's cut to the chase. Are you aware of your condition as an artificial human?"

He nodded immediately. At least they had introduced him with knowledge about what he exactly was.

"Well, that will save us a lot of explanations. Because of your short life, you're going to have to think about what you're going to do from now on. Rider and I will help you escape, but from there, the rest is up to you."

"What I'm going to do... I don't know." Well, that was to be expected.

"Still, you're gonna have to think about it. If you haven't by the time we get you out of here, it'll be the same as if you'd stayed here and died."

"Die...?" His face was filled with concern. It seems like that really got him thinking. I couldn't be soft on him if he wanted to survive out there.

"Come on, Rider. He will need some time to think."

With that said, I turned around and set out to leave the room. Rider also said goodbye and left the room in spiritual form.

But, for some reason, I stopped just before leaving. "If you want me to give you some advice, as long as you do what you want to do, and follow the path you chose to the end, you should have no regrets."

And after saying those last words, I went into spiritual form and left the room.

I spent the day with Fiore talking about our wishes for the Grail. In her case, she wanted to be able to use her legs again without giving up her condition as a magus. Apparently, her circuits clogged her nerves, and to walk again they would have to be removed.

It was a selfish desire, but he could respect it. At least it wouldn't hurt anyone, like the wishes of most magus.

As for mine, I told her the truth. I have no desire, and my dream of saving them all is something I want to fulfill myself. I don't need any omnipotent device that requires a bloodbath to be used.

Obviously, I omitted my nature as Counter Guardian, and that probably I was allowed to be summoned to destroy the whole Holy Grail War scheme.

By night, we were warned that several servants of the red faction had been detected in the forest next to the castle. They were heading straight for here.

The first to be identified was Berserker of Red. A muscular gray giant with blond hair, blue eyes, and he was barely wearing a plate top, a combat skirt and a strange helmet.

His rationality had been completely lost, and he just kept going and frantically swinging his huge sword to destroy everything in his path.

He was quickly subdued between Rider, Caster and Lancer. He never had a chance against Lancer because of the enormous increase in power he suffered from being summoned in his home country.

He was captured to break his contract with his master and Caster became his new master, thus gaining a new pawn in our lines.

Now, only the other servants remained. Saber, Berserker and I were tasked with finishing them. I positioned myself on a balcony of the castle with my eyes reinforced and my black bow ready, while Saber and Berserker went to fight them directly.

Astolfo slipped away and began his plan to escape with the homunculus while everyone was focused on the fight.

While one of the enemy servants remained hidden among the trees, the other went straight to fight with Saber and Berserker.

He identified himself as Rider of Red. He was a man with light brown hair combed up, eyes of the same color, and wore armor typical of the Greek soldiers with a red scarf tied around his neck.

A glance at his weapon, a simple-looking black spear, revealed his identity to me. One of Greece's most famous heroes, Achilles.

His power was truly magnific. He managed to keep a match with our Saber and Berserker, without receiving any damage. His noble phantasm allowed him to deny any harm that did not come from a divine construction or someone of divine descent, and his combat ability was monstrous. He was certainly one of the servants who would cost us the most to defeat.

I was ordered to stand by until I was ordered to attack, which I found stupid, but I had no choice but to go along with it.

In the middle of the fight, an arrow pierced Saber's shoulder and pinned him to a tree. It revealed that the other servant was Archer of Red, and that his noble phantasm could pierce the defense of Fafnir's Armor.

All of a sudden, Saber activated the release of his noble phantasm, although it seemed he was doing so against his will. But, before releasing the enormous amount of prana accumulated in his sword, he stopped at once and withdrew in spirit form.

"Archer, it is your turn. Take care of Rider and Berserker will take care of the other servant. Prince Darnic wants you to show your power."

That was my signal. "Understood, master."

In my hand appeared one of the weapons that the golden King threw at me in our fight. It was an unnamed scythe with a long handle and a crescent-shaped blade. Its peculiarity was that it had an anti-immortal property, which allowed it to harm even the gods and the wounds it caused could only be healed with the body's natural process. It was the prototype from which Harpe originated, the weapon Perseus used to kill the Medusa monster.

In short, one of the few weapons in my arsenal that could pierce the defense of Rider of Red.

"Let's see if this is also funny to you."

I altered the scythe so that its handle would shorten and its blade would become straight and twisted to become aerodynamic. I loaded it into the bow and fired it. Because its effect was passive, it didn't cost much prana.

I aimed for the chest, but Rider seemed to sense the inminent danger and jumped to the side, causing the 'arrow' to pierce his shoulder.

He stared at the 'arrow' in surprise and confusion. Surely, as a Greek hero, he recognized the nature of the noble phantasm I shot at him.

He didn't have much time to reflect when the second and third 'Harpe' were already flying in his direction.

He managed to deflect them with his spear, but the bombardment did not stop there. Although I couldn't shoot them as fast as the swords I usually shoot, my shooting speed was still causing him trouble.

I also kept an eye on Berserker. She was charging straight to where I assumed Archer of Red was, with her mallet flashing electricity.

One of the enemy servant's arrows aimed to her head. I reacted immediately and fired an nameless noble phantasm and intercepted the projectile, deflecting it to pass just a few inches from Berserker's head.

As a result, Berserker managed to attack the tree in which the enemy Archer found himself, but unfortunately, he avoided the attack and fled.

At that moment, Rider of Red summoned a three-horse-drawn battle chariot and withdrew as well, proclaiming to heaven that we would fight again.

I can never understand the fighting maniacs.

With the battle over, I let my bow dissipate and turned to look at my master.

She had again her gentle smile. "That was splendid, Archer."

"It's not a big deal. Besides, they escaped at the end."

"Still, you managed to corner Rider of Red and save our Berserker."

"Well, that's my duty as an ally."

The conversation was interrupted when we heard some alarms ringing. Seconds later, Darnic's voice was heard.

"_Attention. All Yggdmillenia masters. Rider fled with a homunculus. That homunculus is very important, get him back alive at all costs."_

I couldn't help but frown. Rider had been discovered too fast.

I reinforced my legs and prepared to jump into the forest.

"Where are you going Archer?"

"I'm sorry, master. There's something I have to do."

Without further explanation, I jumped off the balcony, landed on the ground and raced full speed into the forest.

* * *

After the attack of Lancer of Red, Karna, the son of the sun god, I traveled to the forest ruled by the black faction following the trail of the other servants of the red faction.

I already felt something was wrong with the Lancer, and when I checked the remains of the fight that took place in the woods my revelation showed me exactly what it was.

Even though they were in enemy territory, the red servants received no orders from their masters, and there was no trace of them either.

There's something very strange about this Holy Grail War.

My observations were suddenly interrupted by a vision. In it was a tall knight in silver armor pointing his sword at the neck of another knight who was down. I recognized they both as servants of the Black faction.

"Are they fighting despite they belong to the same faction?"

I immediately materialized my armor and flag and headed to the place of the fight. My intuition kept telling me that there was something very off in this war.

By the time I arrived on the scene I found Saber of Black who had just knocked out his master, and Rider of Black hugging the dying body of a homunculus with tears in his eyes.

"Saber of Black."

Said servant shook his head and walked towards the homunculus. "I got my path wrong again. I was about to abandon someone else. Without thinking for myself, I tried to make someone else decide for me."

As he spoke, I approached them. "What happened here?"

However, my question was ignored.

"Perhaps I'll give him something very heavy. But still, there is something I want to give him."

After saying that, he nailed his right hand to the left side of his own chest.

"Hold on! Don't do it!"

I tried to stop him, but it was in vain. Before my and Rider of Black's stunned gaze, he ripped out his still beating heart and put it into the bosom of the homunculus.

"He sacrificed himself..."

After that, Saber of Black stepped back and sat on a stone as his original spirit slowly began to collapse.

"A sacrifice for a saved life. It's a fair deal, don't you think?"

"No! Why did you do that!?" Rider's voice sounded torn.

"I don't want to fulfill someone else's wish. I just wanted to fulfill my desire, even if it was selfish. I couldn't stop wanting that. At least once, I wanted to save someone willingly and be proud of it. Without being asked or wanted. I always wanted to do it."

His final farewell was interrupted by a low voice that rang near us.

"I refuse to see such an ending!"

I turned to look in the direction of the voice and saw a tall man with white hair and grey eyes wearing light black and silver armor and a red cloak, walking towards us. What stood out most was his determined gaze.

My Ruler ability identified him as the Archer of Black, but for some strange reason I couldn't determine his identity. All I got was 'nameless' or 'King of Fakers', but I couldn't place any hero like that, and his noble phantasm had a strange name. 'Nameless sword of promised salvation'. I could not see what it was doing, and yet it was classified as EX rank.

It was really weird.

"I'm sick of seeing that to save a person you have to sacrifice another."

"And what are you going to do Archer?" Rider asked the mysterious servant with some hope in his voice.

"I'm going to save him, of course. I'm going to save all." His words would make no sense in someone else's mouth, what could he do in this situation.

But, with the determination and confidence he had, I had the feeling that I could accomplish even the impossible.

"_I am the bone of my sword. _Trace on._"_

After reciting those powerful words, a golden sword appeared in his hand. It was simple in appearance, but its brightness conveyed warmth and a comforting sensation.

Then he stabbed the sword into the ground and I was blinded by a flash of light. The next moment, we were in a green meadow full of life, covered by a beautiful blue sky.

It was incredible. This was not a reality marble. We were in the unreachable utopia, Avalon.

Before the incredulous gaze of those present, Archer's golden sword was wrapped in golden light, and this one swung it in the direction of Saber.

His body was wrapped in light, and to everyone's immense surprise, the hole in his chest began to close, and a new heart began to form. It could only be described as a true miracle.

Was this Archer's noble phantasm? A hero like this should be known worldwide. Then why doesn't he have a name?

From the face of effort and sweat falling down Archer's cheeks, the amount of prana he was using must have been immeasurable.

Finally, Saber's wound was completely healed and we were again in the woods.

Archer fell to the ground on his knees fighting to catch his breath. If he were not a servant, he would surely have died for lack of prana.

"Awesome..." Stars could be seen in Rider's eyes.

Saber touched his chest to check that what had just happened was not a dream. "I see, how could I not have noticed all this time? King of Fakers, the hero who achieved the miracle of saving everyone. I stood by such a hero and I didn't realize it."

Hearing that, my ability finally recognized Archer's identity. King of Fakers, a hero who devoted his whole life to helping and saving others, and eventually died alone on a hill of swords. A sad fate for such a good person.

"I thank you, Archer. I don't know how I can repay this debt."

"It's not necessary. I did it because I wanted to. I don't need a reason to help someone."

Although he was still gasping, Archer showed a smile. His words were genuine. He really helped others because he wanted to, because it was what made him happy.

Saber looked at him with admiration. If his desire was to help someone because he wanted to, this hero was his example to follow.

Suddenly, the homunculus's body began to glow. When the brightness ceased, his breathing had stabilized and his heart was beating again.

Archer got up as he could with his legs shaking, and looked at me. "This is as far as we can help. Ruler, I know it's selfish and it's not a matter of concern to you, but I'd like to ask you to help this boy find freedom."

In the condition he was, and still worried about others.

I pulled myself together and responded to his request. "I promise I will do what I can."

Just then, the boy started growling. He was waking up. I knelt down beside him as he opened his eyes again.

"I... What happened to me?" He was still somewhat dazed and confused.

"Are you all right?" I asked him gently as I offered him my hand.

After looking at me for a few seconds, he grabbed my hand with his and took a look at his body.

"I... Why?"

"One kind hero decided to lay down his life for you. Or so he tried, but another equally kind hero came and saved him."

When he heard that, he looked at the two servants behind me, and they greeted him with an ironic smile.

I took his hand with my two hands to call his attention again and smiled at him. "I am servant Ruler, my real name is Jeanne d'Arc. By my promise, I will protect your life and your soul."

Suddenly, I was pushed aside and Rider of Black embraced the boy. "Thank godness! You're alive!"

"I want to check him out for a second, give me some space."

My words fell on deaf ears and Rider continued to rub his face on the boy's chest. With no other choice, I had to separate him by force.

Rider was fired and caught by Archer, who couldn't hold the weight and fell on his ass. For some reason I heard him mumbling something about E rank luck.

I put my hand on the boy's chest and performed a quick analysis on his body.

"The heart of Siegfried seems to function normally. There is no similar record neither in the ancient Holy Grail Wars." It was incredible that the magic core of a heroic spirit could function normally within him, and not damage his body with the enormous amount of prana it generated.

"Siegfried... The hero of the Song of the Nibelungs. His heart..."

"All right! All right! Our Archer here saved him!" Rider came crawling back and Archer and Saber followed him.

"I'm glad you're okay, kid." Saber's voice was warm, he was really happy.

Archer was going to say something, but he immediately got on his guard and turned to look behind him

I did the same, and I could see that the other masters and servants of the black faction had arrived.

* * *

**And so much for the prologue of this story. What do you think of it? I know it may be a little hasty, but I decided to fast-forward the parts that were exactly the same as the original story. And I know there's a lot of character descriptions, but I can't help it, the cast of this story is a lot bigger than Fate/Stay Nigth.**

**Anyway, we jump straight to where King of Fakers makes a difference. In my opinion, in the original story, Archer of Black was only to fight with Rider of Red and that they could beat his noble phantasm incredibly OP. Our good Archer here is going to have a lot more influence.**

**I already tried to change the first-person narrative from King of Fakers to another character in my previous story, showing Shirou's perspective in his confrontation with King of Fakers. I decided to show the final scene from Ruler's perspective to make the King of Fakers entry more epic. The hero always comes to the end, or so they say.**

**As for how Siegfried was saved, it may look like a Deus ex Maquina, but if you stop to think about it, if the sword of promised salvation reached Avalon, the unreachable utopia, why shouldn't its light have the same healing properties? However, you can think whatever you want.**

**As for romance, I'm not sure yet. Those who read the note at the end of my previous story will know that the only one I respect his waifus is Shirou. So, should I make Jeanne fall in love with the EX rank density? Of course King of Fakers isn't going to make her falling in loe on purpose, he doesn't know what that is. The memories of Rin's explanation of what a date is are blurred.**

**And as for the next update, that depends. I would also like to start another of the ideas I put in my profile, but if I see that you support this story, maybe I will update the next chapter first. If you'd rather I write another of the stories I put in me profile, let me know too.**

**With this I bid you farewell for now. Until we meet again!**


	2. Chapter 1

**See you again, people! I was pleasantly surprised that this story had so much support, so here is the next chapter of this story. And the other surprise was that most of you wanted Jeanne to fall in love with King of Fakers. Fulfilling the request of the majority, I'll get to it. This will be the first time I write anything that has to do with romance, so I'll proceed calmly. The relationship between Jeanne and Sieg won't change much, she just won't fall in love with him spontaneously. Anyway, in this chapter we won't start with that yet.**

**On the other hand, I guess I didn't make myself clear, but the reason I didn't mention anything about the past of King of Fakers in the previous chapter is because I already wrote it, and it's my first story _'King of Fakers: Saving them all'_. I said it was advisable to read it for that, not for spam about it. Anyway, a guest took the trouble to put a review explaining it briefly, although it included a great spoiler. Thanks anyway.**

**Without further ado, let the chapter begin.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own any rigth over Type-Moon or the Fate franchise.**

* * *

Things could not have gone worse while I wasn't here.

When I found Rider, he was hugging with tears in his eyes the lifeless body of the homunculus that he and I were trying to save. Next to him was Saber, who had just torn his heart out to try to save the homunculus, and a girl I didn't know.

This one had blond hair tied in a long braid, purple eyes, and wore a purple dress with pieces of silver armor on top. I'll admit she was quite beautiful.

I couldn't get much information about her by taking a look at her 'weapon', because what I initially thought was a spear was actually a flag. Its concept was too far removed from 'sword' to be able to use structural grasp on it through my eyes.

However, her appearance matched the description of the servant Ruler provided by Saber's master.

The strange thing was that she also looked like Nero, although not as exaggerated as Saber of Red.

After Saber introduced his heart into the homunculus chest, he sat waiting for his imminent death and began to say goodbye to his master and Rider.

That's when I couldn't take it anymore and I stepped in. Maybe for him his sacrifice to save the boy was worth it, but not for me.

I knew it was a hypocrite. I probably would have done something like that if I were in his situation. But, I couldn't stand by and watch such a scene.

I had to do something. I had to save them.

By the time I realized what I was doing, I had already interrupted Saber's farewell and manifested my true noble phantasm in my hand.

I managed to regenerate his heart, but that consumed almost all my reserves of prana. I used my own reserves and not the prana provided by Fiore so as not to exhaust her, and my ability to Independent Action could barely sustain my existence as her prana began to restore my depleted reserves.

Still, I had one last thing to do for the boy.

I asked Ruler to help the boy find freedom. A selfish request on a matter that had nothing to do with her, but I had no other choice. The rest of the black faction would soon arrive, and they would try to regain their 'property'.

If they succeed, everything would have been in vain.

To my great surprise, Ruler accepted and promised to protect the boy.

After that, the boy regained consciousness, and Ruler confirmed after reviewing his body that Siegfried's heart was functioning smoothly.

And, here we are now. Lancer arrived mounted on his war steed, along with the masters of the black faction, and Caster and Berserker materialised around us to block any escape route.

Fiore was brought here by her brother, and she was looking at me full of concern.

"Rider, Archer and Saber, can any of you explain what happened here? And who is this servant?" Darnic was the first to break the tense silence.

Ruler went ahead of us and introduced herself. "I am Servant Ruler, the judge of this Holy Grail War."

"So, what happened here? "Lancer reformulated his master's question in a cold and threatening tone.

"Well... Saber decided to give his heart to save him."

The place fell silent. What Rider had just said made no sense out of context. However, Lancer seemed to give him the benefit of the doubt.

"What Rider says is true, Archer?"

I just nodded without adding any more details, and Saber also did the same thing when was asked.

"Well, that would explain why I can feel the heart of Knowing within the homunculus. In that case, who is he?" This time it was Caster who spoke.

Rider immediately stood in front of the boy, and Saber and I positioned ourselves beside him.

"Answer."

As I thought about how I would respond to get out of this situation, Rider stepped forward and briefly explained what happened.

At least, he described my noble phantasm as _"And then Archer drew a very bright golden sword, and did something with it to heal Saber."_

I thought I was good at omitting information and telling half-truths, but he took the cake. I don't know if I was lucky or he did it on purpose... Heh, who am I kidding? Me, having luck?

"So we almost lost to Saber because of your incompetence. You can thank Fiore for her Archer being so helpful." Darnic spoke to the still unconscious Saber's master.

"Was that your noble phantasm, Archer?" Fiore asked me in amazement.

"You could say yes."

After observing the boy for quite a while, Caster spoke to Lancer's master. "Darnic, this homunculus is important."

"Rider, hand it over."

"I refuse." Rider's response came quickly, and his face was now totally serious.

"Don't waste my time."

Rider's master raised his left hand intending to use a command seal, but was stopped by Ruler.

"Stop right now. You can't make him participate in the Holy Grail War."

"What?"

"The Holy War has rules. He does not partake in it of his own free will."

"However, he is not detached from it. He received the heart of Saber, or at least a copy."

"Even so, he hasn't become a servant. Caster, you should be able to understand it, right?"

"That's right, he's a homunculus. And that's important to me."

Darnic supported Caster in the discussion. "It's something we create to serve us. It has no personality, no history, no family. It was created to fight."

Luckily, Ruler answered before my patience to hear him was over. I really don't like magus.

"That may be true. But he acted with the will to live. And there are people who want him to live."

"Who? Saber? You wanted it to live?"

Saber nodded. "Yes. My wish was for him to live. That's why I decided to give him my heart." His usually stoic face was now full of resolution.

"I promised to protect him, and I intend to keep that promise." Ruler raised her flag and pointed it at Lancer. Her face left no room for doubt. "I swear on this flag."

Lancer seemed to recognize the flag of Ruler. "Orleans' woman, huh?"

"I won't deliver him, not even by my real name."

The tension in the environment increased considerably. It seemed that the fight would begin at any moment.

Lancer thought it over and let it go. "Rider, do you feel your actions are embarrassing?"

"I don't think so! In fact, I think what I did was the right thing!"

Lancer showed a glimmer of a smile as he saw Rider's sincerity. "Well, thanks to Archer, the losses we suffered tonight were minimal. But, it would not be a good example to leave you unpunished either. The same applies to you, Saber. Caster."

The masked servant set out to restrain Astolfo's hands, but was stopped by my voice.

"Wait a moment."

At once I felt the gaze of all present fixed in me.

"Is there anything you want to add, Archer?"

"I was the one who helped Rider hide the boy and who suggested the escape plan. Also, I was the one who asked Ruler to help him. If you want to punish the culprit for all this, then I am the one you have to punish."

My words surprised everyone. I guess they didn't expect me to try to take the blame alone.

I heard Rider's worried voice beside me. "What are you saying Archer!? You don't have to be punished..."

His impetus died when he looked to my eyes. He understood that I would not recant.

"Is that so? Then, do you regret your actions?" Lancer asked me in a cold tone and an indecipherable expression.

I answered his question by looking at him with eyes full of determination. "Of course not. Helping people isn't wrong. I'm just taking responsibility for my actions."

We kept exchanging glances in silence for a few moments. He seemed to be testing me. Finally, he closed his eyes and smiled.

"Even so, Saber and Rider acted of their own free will, so their punishment will not be revoked. But, since you were the cause of all this, even though you solved the problem you caused, you will assume part of their punishment."

With that said, Caster molded a mass of rock around our hands as shackles.

"Well, let's go." Darnic intended to return to the castle, but his servant interrupted him.

"Wait. We still have to talk. Ruler, as believers of God that we are, is there no way that we can collaborate?"

"No. As long as both sides want the Grail, you will fight according to your pride. I will not interfere in that."

Upon hearing her answer, Lancer ended the negotiation and turned to leave. Everyone else followed him, except Rider.

This one stopped and turned to talk to the boy. "Hey boy! This is the most we could do. Bye! Don't worry! The you of now can do what you want. You can go to the city, meet people, fall in love with someone, hate someone, and have a good life. Understood!?"

At the end of his farewell, he turned to look at Saber and me, "You guys have to say goodbye, too."

The first one to do it was Saber. "I guess this is the farewell, boy. I know that the gift I gave you may be something very heavy for you, but I do not regret giving it to you. I know you will put it to good use."

The boy placed a hand on his chest and nodded resolutely. "Thank you very much, Siegfried."

Then it was my turn to say goodbye. Everyone, even Ruler, looked at me with expectations. I couldn't help but sigh, and I would have scratched the back of my head if it wasn't for my hands being inside a block of rock.

"I suck at goodbyes, but I guess I'll try. I hope you find the path you want to follow, boy. The path you choose and can follow without regrets, and the one that makes you happy."

He nodded with conviction at my words. "Thank you very much too, Archer. I'll be sure to take your advice."

With that said, we turned around and followed the other members of the black faction. For some reason, I thought I saw Ruler looking at me with... concern?

I guess the lack of prana is starting to affect me. Why would Ruler care about me?

Anyway, we were taken to the castle catacombs, and there Rider's master tried to torture us.

The key word was 'tried', since she couldn't do anything with Fafnir's Armor, Saber's passive noble phantasm, and well, to make someone like me suffer in pain, that his first memories are of a hell on earth, it takes a lot more than she could inflict.

Still, for some reason, she became much more obsessed with her own servant.

At least, it only lasted that night, and they let us out the next day.

* * *

Meanwhile, in the church of Sighisoara, there was the priest Kotomine along with three of the servants of the red faction, Lancer of Red, Rider of Red and Archer of Red.

Lancer was a tall man with completely pale skin, white hair, blue eyes, and wore golden armor, while Archer was a woman with long brown hair, green eyes, feline-like ears, and she wore green and black fabrics.

"It seems that they captured Espartacus." The priest commented with his calm tone.

"Expected, he went to attack alone." Rider of Red responded still in pain. The wounds caused by Archer of Black's strange projectiles were still healing.

"We couldn't do anything." Archer of Red finished the sentence for him.

"If you say it, it must be true. On the other hand, it looks like Saber of Black almost fell, you know what happened?"

"What do you mean by 'almost fell'?" Rider asked the question the three servants had in mind.

"It was strange. It seemed like he was deliberately taking his own life, but another of the black servants saved him at the last instant." The priest looked strange as he said the last part. He almost looked excited and expectant.

"It must have been a dispute with his master. It's a normal thing." Archer of Red responded with indifference, without making much of a fuss.

"What about you? What do you think?" Shirou turned to look at Lancer as he asked him the question.

"He didn't seem like a man like that. In that case, something must have happened."

"Something?"

"Who knows..."After that vague answer, Lancer went into spirit form and left.

"What about you, Rider? From what I see, your wounds are still healing."

"This was the work of Archer of Black. The projectiles he fired were very rare. It seemed as if he had taken a scythe and twisted the blade."

"Even so, it is troubling that their Archer possesses a weapon that can pierce your defense. Any idea who he might be?"

"Actually, I have no idea. I heard about another fellow Greek hero who owned a scythe that could kill immortals, but to my knowledge he only had one, and I doubt he'd go around shooting it with a bow. Also, the strangest thing is that all the projectiles were totally identical. If you put two together, you couldn't tell them apart."

Shirou remained thoughtful for a few moments. "With such a description, their Archer migth be the hero summoned with the stolen catalyst, King of Fakers."

Both servants looked at him in confusion.

"King of Fakers? I don't know of any hero named that"

"Well, that's probably because his legend isn't very well known. But, still, he seems to be quite dangerous, especially for you Rider."

Said servant put a smile and smashed his fist into his palm. "I'm looking forward to fighting him again and getting to know him."

Soon after, both servants left Shiroualone, thinking to himself under the dim moonlight that seeped through the windows.

"Looks like I found him. A hero who pursues the same dream as me. It's a shame we're on opposite sides, but, maybe I can convince him to join me."

* * *

That same night, Fiore was on her way to Darnic's office after being called by this one. Her head at that time was full of thoughts about Archer.

She had already spoken with him about their desires. He wanted to save everyone, but he didn't want to use the Grail to do it. He wanted to do it with his own efforts.

She could respect that, although it was still rare for him to be summoned without desiring the Grail. However, she did not expect him to put his dream above his loyalty to the Yggdmillenia and help escape the homunculus Caster needed to use his noble phantasm.

Added to that was the dream she had the night before. She dreamed of Archer's memories of his life, or at least what was left of them.

What she saw was a lone hero who threw away everything to pursue his dream, and devoted his whole life to making others happy without receiving anything in return.

It just wasn't fair for such a good person to have such a lonely and sad life.

She would have to talk to him more. They almost lost Saber for lack of communication with his master. She couldn't afford for something like this to happen to Archer.

Fiore walked into the office and found Darnic discussing matters with Lancer. "I was told you had something to talk to me about."

The leader of the Yggdmillenia family just gave her a newspaper. "I want you to look at this."

The first news she read was about a series of murders committed in a village near the city of Trifas, Sighisoara. All the bodies had been found mutilated and their hearts ripped out. The news said the event looked like the reappearance of the famous killer, Jack the Ripper.

"This..."

"If you're wondering, yes. Most of the victims were magus from the Magus Association. There is no doubt that the person responsible for this is a servant, and quite possibly our Assassin. Tomorrow, when the sun comes up, we will release your servant from his punishment and you will go and investigate."

After nodding, Fiore left the office and set out to prepare her mystic code.

* * *

Jeanne accompanied the homunculus all night, recently called Sieg in honor of the hero who saved him, while they talked about what he wanted to do from now on.

The boy still had doubts, but he seemed inclined to return to save the other homunculi who were still in the castle. She assumed that Archer of Black influenced him a little.

Jeanne couldn't agree more with what he said, _"Helping people isn't wrong"_.

By the time it was dawn, they found a small house in the middle of the countryside. There lived a nice old man who offered to let Sieg live with him.

Finally, Ruler said goodbye to the boy. From now on, he would live a peaceful and happy life there, and she would return to supervise the Holy Grail War. Or at least, that's what she told him.

Her Revelation showed her the boy's fate. He was destined to return to the battlefield.

She could not accept that. Already more was taken from him than he could have had. For him to get involved in this bloody battle again was unfair.

But the source of her concerns was the strange vision she had when Archer of Black was saying goodbye.

She saw him, fighting to the death with another man much like him. She could not recognize the other man as one of the other servants, but she felt that he was important in all this. Besides, Archer was in a pretty sorry state during the vision, and it looked like he was gonna lose.

Archer of Black, a nameless servant summoned to this Holy Grail War without any desire, was already an irregularity. But, she didn't think he was the cause that made this war so strange. Rather, that had to do with the Red faction, specifically their masters.

She would have to investigate this much more thoroughly.

* * *

Already in the morning, Fiore came to pick me up from the castle dungeons. On the way to her room, she introduced me to what we were doing tonight, and she told me we had to talk. Her expression was no longer gentle, and she had become full of seriousness.

When we got to her room, we poured each other a tea and she started with the interrogation.

"Archer, why did you decide to help the homunculus escape?"

I didn't even stop to think about the answer. "Because I wanted and it was the right thing."

"Even though it was just a tool we created so Caster could use his noble phantasm?"

"That's from the point of view of a magus, but to me, he's a person like any other. After all, he escaped from the pipe you had him locked in and asked for our help, all of his own free will."

Fiore remained silent for a few moments after hearing my answer. Finally, she resumed the conversation by changing the subject.

"Then, could you tell me a little bit more about your dream, save them all?"

I don't know what the big change of subject came to, but I decided to answer her question anyway.

"I always thought that helping others was the right thing to do. In fact, it was the only thing that made me happy. That is why I decided to dedicate my life to helping and saving others. Seeing their smiles made it worthwhile."

I told her the truth, although I didn't go into much detail either. The explanation would take a long time and would surely be uncomfortable for her.

She was silent again, assimilating the information.

"I see. So that's why you put your ideals above your loyalty to the black faction."

"Yes. I never got along with magus. Their ideology of 'the end justifies the means' is completely opposed to mine, especially since it usually involved the sacrifice of innocent lives. I can't stand them treating the other persons like tools."

Far from getting angry for criticizing her craft, she looked at me with worry and guilt.

"However, that does not apply to you master. I can tell you're not like those heartless people. As long as you do not stray from your current path, I will continue to obey your orders and grant you victory."

My words seemed to improve her mood and she showed her gentle smile again.

"So, again, I'm counting on you, Archer."

* * *

It got dark and we were taken to the city Sighisoara in a van that was driven by a homunculus.

We parked the van on a road just outside the city, and Fiore equiped her mystic code. It consisted in four metal appendages attached to her back that gave the sensation of spider legs.

During my life I fought many magus, but I had never seen such a strange mystical code. I didn't understand much of Fiore's explanation, but apparently it was based on bronze manipulation.

With it, she had great mobility, and each of the arms was able to attack and defend with simple commands.

I picked her up in nuptial style, which for some reason made her blush, and headed for one of the tallest buildings in the town.

The first strange thing we noticed was that part of the city was shrouded in a dense fog. Not even reinforcing my eyes I could see what was inside.

After a few minutes, two people came out of the fog into a wide street of the city. We recognized them as Saber of Red and her master.

For some strange reason, even if I looked at the sword of the enemy Saber, I could not get any reading of it. Unlike when I looked at that 'sword', my head didn't hurt, all I got was static.

Her sword was not a divine construct, but something was preventing me from using my structural grasp. Surely it was one of her noble phantasms.

"That must be the mercenary Kairi Sisigou. Archer, prepare to attack."

I nodded at my master's command and traced my bow along with a nameless noble phantasm. However, I didn't get to shoot as a third person came out of the fog.

"Wait master. There is someone else next to them."

That person looked like a child to the naked eye. Her hair was grey, her eyes yellow, and she covered her body with some bandages and a black cloak.

Just by looking at the knives in her hands, you could already tell she wasn't a 'normal' child.

She snuck up to the master of Saber. Her steps made no noise at all at the speed at which she was moving.

Within sseconds, she was standing right next to the mercenary and was about to slit his throat. Saber noticed this just in time and kicked her master's legs, forcing him to bend over and avoid the attack by a short shot.

At the same time, Saber threw her a wide swing with her sword and managed to cut off the arm with which the girl was attacking. The pain made her drop the knife, and she jumped back to recover.

After a brief conversation, the girl threw a few knives at Saber and jumped back into the fog. This one deflected them without difficulty and got into the fog to pursue their enemy. Her master stood outside, deploying a bounded field to drive away the mundane people from the place.

"I guess that's our objective."

"Yes. Assassin of Black, Jack the Ripper."

It was not my first time to meet servants whose gender was misunderstood in legends. Our Berserker was an example of this

Moments later, a huge accumulation of prana was felt within the fog, and it was icleared by several crimson rays. There were Saber of Red and Assassin of Black, about to resume their combat.

Now, Saber's helmet was retired, and that seemed to be what kept me from analyzing her sword. The sword was Clarent, Radiant and Brilliant Royal Sword, the sword symbolizing the kingship and the right to succession to the throne of King Arthur. However, the sword was cursed after it was stolen by Mordred.

Therefore, Saber's identity was Mordred Prendragon, Knight of Treachery, and illegitimate son of King Arthur. A homunculus created in the image and likeness of the King of Knights.

Seeing her identity reminded me of some things from my past war. The Saber of that war was none other than Arturia Pendragon.

I was not surprised that this Saber was so powerful considering how strong her 'father' was, although it raised many questions about how Arturia is supposed to be her 'father'.

I set aside those thoughts and struck the noble phantasm on the rope of my bow. I fired several noble phantasms, all aiming at Saber of Red.

She seemed to notice my attack and stopped her charge against Assassin to jump back. The 'arrows' hit where she was a few seconds ago, exploding and raising quite a lot of smoke.

I clicked my tongue. It seemed that this Saber also inherited the absurd intuition of Arturia.

"Did you succeed?"

"Unfortunately not, master. Saber managed to evade my attack at the last moment. As I expected, she is one of the strongest servants of this war."

"What happened to Assassin?"

I took a look at that servant after the dust cloud cleared. The explosions and shrapnel had damaged it quite a bit, but they didn't knock her out.

I couldn't finish her, although I did damage her. She withdrew in spiritual form."

"Well, as we planned, I will take care of the master, Kairi Sisigou."

"Beware, master." As I said that, I began to shoot noble phantasms at Saber.

The servant of the sword began to run towards our location. She was swinging her sword frantically to deflect my 'arrows', firing prana bursts as the bombardment began to overwhelm her.

"Yes, I know. Be careful too, Archer." After saying that, Fiore jumped off the roof where we were standing and headed for Saber of Red's master.

Inevitably, Saber arrived at the base of the building I was in. Being in the middle of a city, I couldn't afford to use 'arrows' that caused a lot of collateral damage.

I had no choice but to wait for her to approach me and face her in a sword combat.

She started running up the wall of the building, completely ignoring any law of physics. She kept deflecting and dodging my 'arrows' until she got a few feet below me. Then, she threw an upward cut to me, as she jumped up to cover the remaining height between us.

I leaned back and narrowly avoided the blade. Saber landed a few meters behind me and threw herself back at me.

"Come here, Archer!"

I turned quickly, let my bow dissipate, and traced Kanshou and Bakuya. She threw me a horizontal swing with the intention of cutting me in half. I parried it with Kanshou. Her enormous strength made my arm, even reinforced, tremble.

My change of weapons surprised her for a few moments. I took advantage of that and threw a thrust with Bakuya pointing at her neck. She leaned to her right and narrowly dodged my attack, receiving a superficial cut.

She loosened her left hand from the grip of her sword and closed it in a fist as she filled it with prana. She threw an uppercut into my belly while casting a prana burst.

I brought Kanshou in front of my belly and prepared for the impact.

"Guh!"

The blade cracked and I flew off the roof.

I was falling down the street below the building. I pulled myself together as I could and looked back at Saber. She jumped off the roof to chase me.

I turned in the air to land with me feet, and as soon as I landed I jumped back. Seconds later, Saber crashed violently where I had been. I filled both blades with prana to make them unstable and threw them at her.

She hit them to deflect them with a simple swing, but that was a mistake.

"What!?"

The swords exploded in her face, and one of the pieces of shrapnel opened a wound on her head. Blood began to drip down her forehead, and her face showed a manic smile.

"An Archer who shoots twisted swords. You must be the servant the priest spoke of, King of Fakers."

Well, this was problematic. I didn't expect the enemy to discover my identity so soon, although I suppose that's because the catalyst that was used to summon me was stolen from them.

"Draw your sword of the election and fight seriously! I will crush you and prove that I am the rightful successor to the throne of Great Britain."

Just what I need. Now I have a servant with problems with being recognized pointing directly at me.

"Sorry, but I'm not going to use something like that here. You will have to settle for this." By saying that I traced back to Kanshou and Bakuya.

Trying to match her in brute force made no sense. Her parameters were higher than mine, and her prana burst was much more powerful. I will have to face her with my usual fighting style. After all, fighting someone stronger than me is normal for me.

"Then, die!" After roaring, she threw herself at me with a prana burst.

I just dodged and deflected her attacks. Blocking was not an option. Though her sword was of the same rank as mine, with her prana burst, my swords would be shattered in the first Clash. and her attack would follow its trajectory without being deflected.

Although her fighting style was unorthodox, she knew what she was doing. There were hardly any openings between her frantic attacks, and the few I managed to exploit, she avoided my attacks thanks to her intuition.

We stayed that way for a few minutes. Her frustration was starting to grow with every attack I deflected. The street was beginning to fill with craters because of her constant prana bursts.

Seeing that we were going nowhere, I decided to step up my play.

Bakuya clashed violently with Clarent, and my sword broke. She threw a swing immediately to my right side now that that side was unarmed. I struck her blade below with Kanshou, managing to deflect it upward and barely grazing me.

My other blade broke in exchange, but, instead of tracing another pair of married swords, I gathered both hands above my head and traced Durandal. I pumped prana into it and swung it towards her left shoulder with all my strength.

She brought her sword back for little, still confused by the change in fighting style. She blocked my attack, but she was thrown back by my prana burst.

Before she pulled herself together, I threw myself forward, swinging Durandal only with my left hand. She hastily blocked the attack, barely regaining balance.

Quickly, I traced Caladbolg II into my right hand and threw a quick thrust to the left of her chest. I let the experience of the weapon invade me, and my body replicated the enormous strength of its original owner.

Saber leaned slightly to one side, and my attack only grazed her shoulder. Her shoulder trap was destroyed, and her shoulder began to bleed.

"Tsk. Sly bastard!"

Her sword wrapped itself in crimson lightning and she swung it in front of her. I crossed both blades in front of me and let myself be carried away with the blow.

I slipped back a few feet, nailing my boots to the ground to slow down, let Caladbolg vanish and prepared for the next attack.

The Knight of Treachery leapt upon me, swinging her blade still wrapped in lightning to my head. I pumped more prana into Durandal to wrap it in light, and swung it upwards in a motion opposite to her.

Both blades clashed violently. The force of the clash, plus the two prana bursts, created a shockwave that destroyed the crystals around us and ripped the cobblestones off the ground.

The two of us were thrown off to opposite sides of the street, and the fight stopped at a standstill.

Okay, changing weapons suddenly didn't work either. I needed an opening that could allow me to strike a definitive blow. Otherwise, this would become a battle of stamina.

To overcome her absurd reflexes and create that opening, I would have to use the definitive technique I created through all my work with Kanshou and Bakuya.

Through our bond, I noticed that my master was quite nervous, almost as if she was afraid. That could just means she wasn't doing too well.

Her safety came first. Initially we came for Assassin, Saber of Red was only a secondary target in case we met her.

Besides, with all the explosions, it was weird we didn't get the attention of the locals. If this continues to escalate, I'm afraid we may involve some civilian.

_"Master, are you okay?"_

Her answer was not long in coming. "_Yes, in a way. How's it going for you?"_

_"Saber is a tough opponent. To beat her, I'm going to have to risk it all. What should we do? Should we back off?"_

She remained silent for a few moments. Meanwhile, I watched Saber. She had recovered, and was watching me. On her face there was a bestial smile.

_"We are withdrawing, Archer. Let's meet at the rendezvous point."_

_"Understood Master."_

"Take this!"

With the decision made, instead of facing Saber's imminent attack, I jumped back to land on the roof of one of the buildings. Her attack hit the ground where I was a few seconds ago, creating another crater in the street.

"Are you running, Archer!?"

"Yes. This is not a suitable battlefield. We'd better leave it for the next time."

She didn't take my words very well. "Wait a moment, bastard!"

But she couldn't follow me because she had to deflect several swords that were fired in her direction. Some of the blades crushed into the ground at her feet, raising a smokescreen that blocked her vision, allowing me to successfully escape.

I went back to the van and there I met Fiore along with her brother Caules. Apparently, he followed us out of the blue and helped Fiore in her fight against the mercenary. If it weren't for him, my master would have been defeated.

I made a mental note to never leave Fiore alone again. Although she was a talented magus, her combat experience was practically nil. Against such an experienced opponent and with a fighting style so far removed from that of an average magus, she found herself overwhelmed.

We returned to the castle in silence to rest for the rest of the night.

* * *

Ruler was investigating in Sighisoara the next morning. The trail of the red faction's servants led her to this site, so their masters would probably be here.

Moreover, in this city, Assassin of Black, who had apparently gone rogue, was killing innocent people, which was a clear violation of the rules of Holy Grail War. And, apparently, there was also a fight between Saber of Red and Archer of Black.

The two had made a good number, leaving the road impassable with so much crater, although they managed not to harm any civilians.

It was impressive to see Archer of Black match an opponent as superior in parameters as Saber of Red. Where any other servant would have retired because of the enormous disadvantage, he managed to pair it with what little he had at his disposal.

The trail led her to the church of the city. At first sight, the site seemed abandoned, but she came in anyway. She needed answers.

Upon entering, a trap was activated, and prana chains attempted to restrain her. However, her immense magical resistance caused the chains to be practically destroyed as they approached her.

Still, she stopped completely. The moment she set foot in the place, her Revelation skill activated and showed her a vision.

In it, she saw a man who was in this church a short time ago. His appearance was similar to that of Archer of Black, only his eyes were brown rather than steel grey. He was the master of the red faction, and what was more disturbing, was the same man who saw King of Fakers fight to the death in her previous vision.

Her intuition screamed at her that this man was important, and had much to do with the irregularities of this war.

She needed to meet him.

Following his trail and that of the Red Faction servants, Ruler left the church at full speed.

* * *

Sieg was in the room that good man left him. His mind was still thinking about the path he should take from now on.

Part of him wanted to come back to save the other homunculi he left behind in that castle.

After talking to Ruler and the elder about what freedom was, he still didn't understand it very well. However, Rider, Archer and Saber did their utmost to grant it to him. One of them almost sacrificed himself for it.

He thought that, if he deserved all that, then so did his fellow homunculus.

Still, his heart still had doubts. Ruler I told him that if he didn't really want to come back for them, that he shouldn't, that he should stay here and continue his peaceful and happy life. She had the best intentions for him, as did the threesome of altruistic servants, although he still had to work on the smiling thing.

But to live there peacefully and do nothing, while the other homunculus suffered, felt empty.

To go to their rescue was madness. He faced a whole faction of servants and all the security of the castle.

In the midst of that thought, Archer's words resonated in his mind. _"Helping people is not wrong."_

For that man it was an irrefutable truth, and no matter how much he thought, Sieg found that he agreed with those words.

He made up his mind. Just as the three servants risked to give him freedom, he would risk to grant freedom to the other homunculi.

That was the path he chose to follow, and the one he would not regret following.

* * *

"You have to be kidding."

The day had passed without any notable events. Rider and Saber were released, and the second had a chat with his master. He agreed to give him more freedom and revoked his order of absolute silence.

In my opinion, the blonde magus seemed genuinely sorry for his mistake, and promised to increase communication between him and his servant.

Saber was formally introduced to us as Siegfried, and we discussed how we should capture the rogue Assassin to force him into our ranks. Other than that, the only thing Darnic notified us about the red faction was that they'd been gathering relics for weeks, even before the Holy Grail War began. He theorized it was for the noble phantasm of Caster of Red.

The sun was setting on the horizon, and as much as I looked at what was approaching the castle above the forest, it seemed more and more absurd.

A freaking flying fortress! The red faction had decided to attack us on board a freaking flying palace!

The only thing that prepared me for such a sight was the colossal sword that the King of Heroes threw at me during our fight, and it still fell short.

"Of all the ways they could attack us... I never imagined this."

"Archer, what's going on?"

"It's stopped. Looks like they won't be coming right now."

"It seems so." I heard someone else's voice above us, and seconds later, Darnic and Lancer landed next to us.

"Grandfather?"

"Let's go in, Fiore. We can only rely on our servants in this battle."

"That's right. From here on out, it will be our battle. In addition to entering our territory... they've spread that filth around." In stating that, Lancer put on a smile that promised pain to our enemies.

One by one, the remaining servants materialized around us.

Darnic turned to look at his servant and bowed. "My King, use all the power you want."

"Release Berserker of Red."

"Is that what you want?"

"They want a head-on showdown. It would be rude not to use all of our power."

"Understood." After that, the head of the Yggdmillenia entered the castle.

Fiore's eyes met mine. There was no need for words, I nodded and smiled confidently, and she, after showing me one last gentle smile, turned and directed her brother to follow her into the castle.

Moments later, the six servants were on the balcony overlooking the castle gates. In the courtyard in front of us was an army of golems created by Caster and combat homunculus who would join us in the battle.

All six of us had faces full of determination. Well... Bersreker was angry, unsurprisingly, and Lancer was riding on his war horse.

"Saber, you will go to the front. You will be the spearhead, and you will be in charge of facing Saber of Red if she appears."

The servant of the sword nodded stoically.

"Archer, you will lead the homunculus."

That was an acceptable charge. At least I could protect those I could as long as I wasn't fighting another servant.

"Understood. But what if Rider of Red decides to come to me?"

"You will have to deal with him. Saber will help you if hr do not come across Saber of Red."

Saber and I nod to the course of action.

"Caster, you wait here. See when Berserker of Red will be available."

"Understood."

"Rider, you just show us the power of one of the Paladins of Charlemagne."

This one hit his chest with confidence. "Yes! Leave it to me! The table is the table, and the chair is the chair. This fight will be my task!" Despite his strange speech and bizarre gestures, his face remained steady.

"Berserker, you are free. Hit as much as you want." Said servant only snarled in response.

"Finally, Archer, as I do not know your noble phantasm, I will ask you. Can you knock that thing down?"

"That depends on its defenses, although I trust I can make a good hole in it."

"Do it then. It will be a great opening for this glorious battle."

He paused and raised his silver spear toward the flying fortress on the horizon.

"Everyone, we don't have Assassin! They probably have their six warriors except for Berserker. Our forces are even. I will still ask, does anyone think we will lose?."

No one answered. It was not necessary.

"That's right. We'll win. We'll show them our superiority and crush them! We're the protectors of this earth! Let us deal with those unworthy and dirty invaders who dare to enter our territory! Go!"

On his signal, Lancer, Berserker and Saber leaped and rushed into the battlefield. Caster slipped back into the castle, and Rider summoned his mount, a Hypogriff, and flew in the direction of the flying fortress.

I jumped on the roof of the castle and positioned myself to shoot.

"Trace on."

In my left hand appeared my black bow, and in my right hand appeared Caladbolg II. I hit the handle of the Fake Spiral Sword into the bow's rope and pulled it while altering the noble phantasm to make it more aerodynamic.

_"I am the bone of my sword."_ The sword was reinforced by my aria and I overloaded it with prana to turn it into a broken phantasm.

"Caladbolg!" I released the rope, and the sword flew at tremendous speed toward the enemy flying fortress. The tiles around me were torn out by the tremendous pressure of the shot.

The broken phantasm crossed the battlefield sky wrapped in a spatial distortion, marking the beginning of the first great battle of the Great Holy Grail War.

* * *

**And so this chapter goes. What do you think? Yes, I know I cut it when the good was begining. The good Cliffhanger not Jutsu. But think of it this way, isn't it better to cut it here right when it's going to start and not in the middle of the Great Battle?**

**Well, this chapter is practically staging for battle. Although we had the fight between King of Fakers and Mordred, and with it, Archer managed to remember Arthur. And this time, Archer didn't shit his pants and run away after being overtaken by his opponent.**

**It has to be said in Chiron's defense, he didn't have a proper weapon to face Mordred. He only had his fists in hand-to-hand combat against someone who abused prana burst. However, King of Fakers is accustomed to fighting against beings who far surpass him. His fighting style, which is an improved version of that of EMIYA thanks to the prana burst, is explicitly designed for it.**

**And, the people of culture will have understood that, the scene where King of Fakers uses Durandal and Caladbolg II, is a reference to the fight between EMIYA and Shirou of the visual novel. Adaptations overlooked this, but switching to Durandal for a powerful attack is part of EMIYA's fighting style, as well as using Caladbolg for a thrust.**

**On another note, Sieg makes his decision to save the other homunculi by the influence of Archer. I don't know what it's like in the novel, but in anime it's practically a spontaneous decision, especially when Jeanne and Astolfo tell him to live a quiet life, several times.**

**And before you misunderstand, this line from King of Fakers, _'I'll admit she was quite beautiful'_, does not imply any infatuation on his part. It's a reference to when he met Nero in my first story. They're not the same words, but he also says that she is quite beautiful.**

**Finally, Jeanne's vision is a small preview of the final fight between Kotomine Shirou and King of Fakers. I will say nothing more and let you draw your conclusions.**

**Without further ado, as always, any constructive review, follow and fav is welcome, and motivates me to continue writing. And while we're at it, a little spam. At the same time as I'm updating this, I'm uploading the prologue to a new story. It's about the idea of the crossover with Date a Live, which, as I recall, some of you agreed to write it.**

**With this I bid you farewell for now. Until we meet again!**


	3. Chapter 2

**We see each other again, people. I bring you the next chapter of this story, which is practically action from beginning to end. This chapter will cover most of the first great battle, and as in the first chapter, I decided to fast-foward or omit events that are exactly the same in the original story. By this, I mean, for example, the fight between Karna and Vlad III. I don't know about you, but I don't think you want to read a fight that's exactly like the one in the anime. However, I did not omit them completely and mentioned them in passing to make it clear that they did.**

**As for the question of EVA-saiyan, the fighting style can help to recognize a heroic spirit, in the case of Mordred not. While her unorthodox style is quite unique, let us remember that Mordred's noble phantasm, Secret of Pedigree, prevents anyone from finding out her identity, even servants who knew her in life. That is why, until she takes off her helmet, King of Fakers cannot find out her identity through her sword, nor can he relate her to Arturia.**

**I also set out to correct the errors you pointed out to me.**

**Without further ado, let the chapter begin.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own any rigth over Type-Moon or the Fate franchise.**

* * *

In the throne room of The Hanging Gardens of Babylon, Assassin of Red, Caster of Red and Kotomine Shirou watched the battlefield through projected images

Despite her Assassin class, the Queen of Assyria had a great knowledge of magecraft, even greater than Caster himself, who was only a writer of the modern era.

Lancer, Archer and Rider were on the outer balconies of the flying fortress, ready to jump into action at any moment. As for Saber of Red and her master, they did not know about their whereabouts, but they were sent a message to warn them about their plan, so they would not be long in coming.

The Dragon Tooth Warriors, familiars mass produced by Assassin, were about to collide with the army of homunculi and golems deployed by the black faction. Lancer of Black, Saber of Black and Berserker of Black were also fast approaching them by land, and Rider of Black was flying towards them in his mount.

However, Archer of Black was nowhere to be seen.

"Archer, it's about time you unleashed your noble phantasm to cleanse their army." Shirou gave instructions to said servant through Assassin's magecraft.

"_Understood."_ Archer materialized his bow and set out to comply with the order.

But, his actions stopped because of the dismayed voice of Assassin. "Master, a huge amount of prana is approaching at great speed!"

"What!?"

The projected images went on to show what looked like a blue comet stretching across the battlefield skies. Its trajectory pointed directly at them.

"Magnificient! Archer of Black is once again surprising us with another of his tricks!" Caster remarked vigorously as he wrote frantically in his book.

Assassin snapped his tongue at the carefree servant. Assassin,

"I leave the defens to you, Assassin." Shirou remained calm at all times, while his eyes did not let go of the impending attack.

"Of course, master. I will teach them not to underestimate the defensive power of my noble phantasm." Assassin showed a confident smile and snapped his fingers.

At that instant, a multitude of magic circles formed in front of the fortress, and several prana beams were fired at the projectile.

Still, it was useless. The prana beams dispersed as they approached the comet.

In seconds, the broken phantasm crashed into the first magic barrier. To the immense surprise of all present, the projectile passed through it as if it were paper. The 'arrow' continued to advance without slowing down a bit. The spatial distortion surrounding it immediately destroyed Assassin's magical defenses.

"Impossible!"

In spite of the immense surprise, Assassin did not stand idly by. With a mental order, the flying fortress began to turn at full speed.

They barely made it in time. They got the broken phantasm to hit the sides and not the central core, where the throne room was.

However, the huge explosion made the whole place stagger. The large amount of prana released took the form of a red bubble for a few moments. The shockwave even rocked the entire battlefield.

Much of the left side of the fortress was destroyed, but it managed to stay in flight. The debris began to fall to the ground, wreaking havoc on the family army.

"Is everyone okay!?" Shirou asked as he rose from the ground. The tremor caused by the explosion had brought him and Caster down, who had nothing to lean on.

After receiving affirmative answers from all the servants, the excited voice of Rider was heard. _What the hell was that!?_

"We assume it was another of the noble phantasms of Archer of Black."

"_What!? First an anti-immortal scythe and now an anti-army noble phantasm? That guy is really interesting!_

"Assassin, what's the damage?"

"The explosion only caused surface damage. We will be able to continue in flight without problems. However, if we get more hits like that, I'm afraid we'll be in trouble, Master." Assassin replied agitated. Her precious noble phantasm had been harmed by the enemy without much difficulty.

"Good. We will continue with the plan as agreed."

All the servants nodded. Archer struck two arrows at her bow and aimed towards the night sky.

"_With my bow and my arrows, I respectfully ask for the protection of the sun god Apollo, and the moon goddess Artemis."_

Both arrows were infused with prana. Archer released the rope, and the projectiles flew upwards, scattered among the stars.

"_I offer thee this calamity. Phoebus Catastrophe!"_

At the end of her chanting, the sky lit up, and endless emerald projectiles fell upon the army of the black faction. It was literally a rain of death. They had nothing to do with such an attack.

"ROOOAAAAR!" Before the projectiles fell, a guttural roar echoed on the battlefield. Berseker of Black appeared among the enemy forces and crashed her mace into the ground.

The noble phantasm then began to emit a great deal of electricity. This worked as an improvised barrier, destroying a large number of emerald projectiles.

In addition, several twisted swords struck Archer of Red's arrows, diverting them from their trajectory.

The result was that the number of victims was reduced considerably.

At the same time, Lancer of Black reached Assassin's family army.

"It is time for your punishment, savage invaders of my neat country. My forgiveness will be to end your sinful lives! Your pain will be an incredible despair that will bring peace to your souls!"

After his speech, stone stakes emerged from the ground and impaled all the Dragon Tooth Warriors before him.

Archer of Red frowned. Her noble phantasm had not cleansed the army of the black faction as she had hoped.

"Rider, it's your turn."

"Yosh!" The servant rose with a smile and ran to the edge of the balcony. He leapt to the battlefield, and in the air whistled.

His chariot appeared and he rode on it. "It's time to fight! I, Rider of Red, will take over the battlefield from now on!"

The battle chariot crashed to the ground, wrapped in a green beam of light, and advanced among the enemy ranks, destroying everything in its path.

Lancer of Red and Archer of Red did not fall behind, and jumped to face Lancer of Black.

At the fortress, Caster of Red continued to delight at the sight of the battle between legendary heroes.

On the other hand, Kotomine Shirou was sitting with his hands crossed and his brow frowned.

Realizing this, Caster turned to speak to him. "Well, well, Father Shirou, why are you like this? This show is really interesting to watch."

This one ignored him. "I have information. Ruler is heading this way."

"It is said that you get out of one problem to get into another. Right?"

"In this Holy Grail War, she is still doing her duty... For that reason I will have to see how she uses her abilities. I will probably have to fight her."

* * *

"Come on, servants of the black faction! Show me your power!"

Rider of Red continued on his unstoppable march. His face had a euphoric smile at all times.

Several giant golems appeared in front of him to try to stop him.

"Tsk, get out of my way idiots." The Greek servant did not bother to change his path. His only goal in mind was to find Archer of Black, or any other servant who could give him a exiting fight.

But, to his surprise, the golems turned to mud and stuck to his battle chariot . They then solidified again, successfully trapping the noble phantasm of Rider of Red.

All the homunculus around him jumped to attack him in unison and from all angles. However, it was no problem for the red servant.

With swift movements of his spear, he cut off all his enemies in just a few moments. They could not even react.

Blood splattered everywhere. But, Rider of Red didn't have time to relax. He moved his head to one side and narrowly dodged a scythe with the twisted blade.

That was certainly one of the strange projectiles of Archer of Black. Aquilles could not help but show a wild smile.

"That's interesting! Where are you Archer of Black!? I'm here for the fight we have pending! Let's fight until we're satisfied!"

As soon as he finished speaking, he turned and swung his spear quickly to deflect another 'arrow'. This time, he could see where it came from. The forest that was near the castle of the Yggdmillenia.

"Heh, I found you. You really are a slippery guy. However, my trust... on behalf of my mother, father and friend... I will not turn my back on anyone!"

The Greek servant ran into the forest. His body brimming with prana was wrapped in a green beam, and he carried his spear ahead. The golems in his path were obliterated.

Already in the forest, Achilles landed in a clearing. Anti-immortal projectiles began to rain from all angles.

Rider of Red swung his spear frantically to deflect them, as he continued to run in the direction they came from.

"Don't think the same trick would work twice!"

He was already close. Rider could see the silhouette of the man, up on the branch of a tree and with a huge black bow.

"You're mine!" Rider jumped at him at high speed, intending to cut off his head.

But just before he reached him, something unexpected happened. In front of him materialized Saber of Black, who deflected his attack with his sword and sent him back to the ground.

"You again?" Before he could continue to speak, he had to catch with his hand another projectile heading for his head.

"Heh, another two against one. Let's see if you're doing better this time!"

Both servants jumped at each other and clashed violently. This time it was different. Although Saber of Black was still unable to harm Rider of Black, his mind was clear. The fight was much more even. Trees and pieces of land flew with each crash.

"This is much better!"

Siegfried, on the other hand, continued with his stoic face, although if you looked too closely, you could see a slight hint of a smile.

Another stalemate. Both warriors were repelled by the crash. But, this time, instead of throwing himself forward, Saber jumped to one side.

Twenty weapons, including several scythes, were immediately fired from the bushes behind him. All had anti-immortal attributes, courtesy of The Gate of Babylon.

"What!?" The sudden barrage of weapons took Rider by surprise. He managed to deflect most of them, but some eventually grazed him and a sword pierced his thigh.

Saber left him no time to pull himself together and lunged at him. He swung his great sword only with his right hand. Rider stopped his attack with his spear. Although the situation was becoming more difficult for him, his smile did not disappear from his face.

However, his eyes opened wide when another of these scythes materialized in the free hand of Saber. He quickly swung it aiming to his chest.

Rider leapt as far back as he could, but could not prevent his armor from being cut and a superficial wound appeared on his chest. As soon as he landed, he heard sounds behind him.

He immediately turned to see Archer of Black with his back to him. His legs were separated, and he was holding a long katana with both hands, so that his blade was parallel to the ground.

"Hiken: Tsubame Gaeshi!"

After uttering those words, his body moved to make a swing with the sword. But, at that moment, the space twisted. Where there should only be one blade, there were three, balancing at the same time and from different angles. They weren't three quick attacks that should feel like happening at the same time. Actually, at that time there were three katanas, three strikes superimposed. An attack imposible to avoid.

Rider didn't even worry. Why should he? Although it was an impressive technique, the weapon had no anti-immortal property, so it could not damage him.

That mistake almost cost him his life.

While one swing was directed at his neck and another was directed to the left side of his chest, the third attack was directed towards his right heel, his only weak spot. If that attack landed, it would be his end. His noble phantasm would be annulled, and the other two attacks would cause fatal injuries.

Aquilles moved his spear with all his might and struck the third swing. The katana did not resist enormous force and broke. That caused the other two katanas to disappear.

Without giving Archer time to pull himself together, Rider threw him a quick thrust with his spear.

The broken katana vanished from Archer's hands, and instead, a pair of twin swords appeared, one white and the other black with a red hexagonal pattern. The red archer deflected his spear without much trouble with the black sword.

Aquilles continued his bombardment of rapid attacks. The same fighting style that overwhelmed Saber in his previous fight. Few heroes could catch up with him, and yet Archer did not disappoint.

He deflected and dodged all his attacks, barely getting scratched. His swordsmanship was not as dazzling as Siegfried's, but that did not detract from his merit. An unconventional style of fighting, refined and perfected to face enemies much stronger than him, as in this same case.

The sparks flew on all sides, as Rider of Red increased its pace. Archer of Black did not fall behind, starting to use prana burst more and more.

It was another dead end. In view of this, Rider decided to change his fighting style. Instead of quick attacks, he tried an attack with all his might. A wide horizontal swing.

King of Fakers put his two swords in front of him and let himself be carried away by the attack. Both blades broke, and Archer flew away.

In the middle of the air, he turned around and drew his bow along with another anti-immortal weapon. Seconds later, a barrage of 'arrows' fell on Rider.

Said servant was forced to deflect and block the rain of projectiles. His surroundings were filled with explosions.

From the smoke, Siegfried ran out to attack Aquilles, throwing a cut at his neck with the scythe in his left hand.

Rider tilted his body back, letting the scythe pass inches from his nose. He put his free hand on the ground and kicked Saber's chest. Saber stopped the attack with Blamung and threw another cut with the nameless scythe. Rider jumped back, somersault to get back on his feet, and the fight paused for a few moments.

"Now this is a fight!"

The battle continued for several more minutes. Coordination between Saber and Archer was improving as the battle went on. Rider was being pushed harder and harder. Most of the wounds he received were not dangerous, but the fact that they didn't regenerate remained problematic.

The forest was devastated. It was filled with craters, and the ground was filled with the various weapons that Archer was shooting at Rider. At one point Siegfried began to attack Aquilles with those weapons, making things more difficult for the Greek servant.

It was becoming a fight of resistance, to see who would run out of prana first.

In the middle of the fight, a huge explosion of prana could be seen and felt outside the forest. The three servants stopped to observe the event. A great ray of prana ascended to the sky, formed by two colors, red and blue.

Under normal circumstances they would have let it pass. Could have been caused by the fight between both Lancers, Karna and Vlad III. Both were incredibly powerful servants, one for being a divine spirit, and the other for having been invoked in his homeland and found in his territory.

But, Saber and Archer recognized one of the two noble phantasms that were colliding. It was undoubtedly Balmung, the noble phantasm of Siegfried, which posed a contradiction. If Saber and his sword was here, how his noble phantasm was activated there?

There was only one possible conclusion. It had to be the homunculus that had Siegfried's heart in his body. That was really troubling. The boy they had saved by risking so much had come here, to the battlefield, and was surely fighting with Saber of Red.

Both servants of the black faction looked at each other. There was no need to exchange words, their thought processes were almost identical. Saber nodded and reasserted his stance to face Rider of Red, while Archer turned and ran towards the explosion.

"Hey, what's the big rush? This was being exciting." Rider wasn't happy about one of his opponents leaving.

"He has some business to settle. I'm sorry but you'll have to settle for me." Saber spoke for the first time in the entire fight. He tightened his grip on Balmung's hilt and drew from the ground one of the blades with anti-immortal properties that Archer fired.

"Rider's smile returned to his face. Okay then. Let's see how long you can stand now that you're alone, Saber of Black!"

Both servants resumed fighting and clashed again.

* * *

Sieg had done well at first. He managed to infiltrate the battlefield without getting caught in the crossfire. The servants of each faction began to fight among themselves, completely forgetting the homunculus.

He found several of these who managed to survive. They were few compared to all the corpses that were scattered across the plain. The place was really a land of death.

He stopped to help them, after all, helping someone who needs it is not wrong. That belief was what had brought him here in the first place.

he homunculi he helped brought him to the castle, and there he was able to rescue all the homunculi in the basement.

When they asked him why he was helping them, his answer came out alone. He wanted to give them the same freedom that Archer, Rider and Saber gave him.

However, in the midst of the evacuation, Sieg could distinguish the figure of Rider of Black falling from the sky.

This had been defeated by Assassin of Black in his assault on the flying fortress, and knocked off his mount.

He wanted to go save him, but he couldn't leave the homunculi alone. Then, one of the homunculi he saved from the battlefield told him that, exercising the freedom he gave them, he would let them take care of the evacuation themselves.

With no time to waste, Sieg ran to where Rider had fallen. When he arrived, he found him fighting with Saber of Red. Well... rather than fighting, Astolfo was being beaten, very hard. He had no chance against a servant as powerful as the Knight of Treachery.

He intervened in the fight, even though he knew he didn't have a chance either. But still, he wanted to help Rider, rather than because he saved him, because helping someone is not wrong. That was the path he had chosen.

The result was obvious, both were defeated. Berserker of Black came to try to defeat the enemy Saber, but neither did he. The power difference was abysmal, and she was quickly defeated. Having the blood of a dragon running through her veins gave Mordred the ability to use prana burst as if it did not require prana.

Even so, Sieg did not give up and kept getting up to fight her. He barely managed to cause her a superficial wound during a distraction.

At the insistence of the homunculus, Mordred asked him. "Why do you fight to the end?"

He replied again, full of determination. "Because helping others is not wrong!"

Finally, Sieg was pierced by Clarent and fell unconscious.

During those moments, Berserker of Black attempted a last suicide attack on Saber of Red, self-destructing with his noble phantasm. The explosion did considerable damage, but did not kill the red knight.

The Black faction lost one of their servants, and Saber of Red regenerated as if nothing had happened.

When all was lost, and Astolfo was about to be killed too, Sieg rose again.

After showing his resolve to the Siegfried who was on the throne of heros, he somehow succeeded in manifesting the power of said servant in his body. So now he looked exactly like the Dragon-Blooded Knight.

Although his combat experience was nil, and his swordsmanship was hardly a shadow compared to that of the original Siegfried, with that power he could give Mordred quite a fight.

In the end, both ended up colliding with their noble phantasms, Balmung and Clarent Blood Arthur. The result was a huge explosion that left them both in a deplorable state. Their armor was shattered, their bodies badly wounded, and their reserves of prana almost exhausted.

But the difference was that Sieg was not a servant as such. Therefore, while Mordred was able to regenerate with the prana provided by his master, Sieg lost his 'transformation' and fell to the ground without being able to move a muscle. He had reached his limit.

The situation had really ended badly. He and Astolfo were at the mercy of Saber of Red.

"Heh, I don't understand why, but it's over. After all, you're just an impostor..."

She slowly approached them, with a victorious smile on her face.

But, just then, a couple of swords crashed on the ground in front of her and exploded, preventing her from approaching them.

"Tsk, and now who else is coming to get in my way?"

"Sorry, but if you want to touch a hair of those two, you're gonna have to beat me first."

The owner of voice, and therefore, who had thrown the swords, was none other than Archer.

It is said that the hero is always late. Although he was quite exhausted from his fight with Rider of Red, he remained firm and his face showed pure determination. In his hands he held a long sword of simple appearance, with a golden guard and no decorations.

Mordred recognized that sword immediately.

"Hoh, so you're finally coming to face me with everything you've got, King of Fakers. Well, bring it on!"

Both servants prepared for the impending fight, but that did not happen in the end.

"Oppressor, die by my love!"

A gigantic mass of gray muscle crashed into Mordred, disrupting the scene completely.

"Berserker of Red!?"

In effect, it was Berserker of Red, Spartacus. This had been released by Caster of Black, and ended up fighting with Archer of Red. His ability to regenerate got out of control and ended up turning him into an abominable monster with several arms and heads.

"Damn, you're just a traitor!" Saber, angry at the sudden interruption, flooding her sword with prana and swinging it toward the servant of madness.

The crimson beam that covered Clarent split the servant in half.

"Tch. Don't come bothering me when the good is starting."

However, Spartacus regenerated again, making his appearance even more grotesque if possible. It seemed like he was about to burst.

"Gross." Saber withdrew on the orders of his master

In view of that, Archer approached Rider and Sieg.

"Don't move! You're too hurt!"

At the same time, Ruler was running towards them with a worried face. "You have to get out of here." However, seeing Sieg there, her eyes opened like plates.

"What are you doing here?" She asked in shock.

"I'm sorry, even though you saved my life. But I had to do this... after all, helping others isn't wrong, is it?"

Both Jeanne and Rider looked at Archer. He could not resist the urge to put his hand on his face. He had inadvertently ended up instilling his suicidal tendencies in the poor boy.

"We don't have time, you need get out of here."

"I can't move. You go. You're not a servant who should die here." Sieg had hardly any energy left to talk about.

"Then, at least you, Rider of Black and Archer of Black."

At her proposal, Astolfó seemed to be angry. "No! No! No!"

"Hey, you're not a child."

"If I say no, is no! I won't run away! If it were you, you wouldn't leave him here to escape, would you, Ruler?" At the end of his answer, Astolfo showed a confident smile.

Archer stayed out of the conversation as he thought. Of course, he wasn't going to leave anyone behind. Sacrificing someone to save himself was unthinkable for him.

But... sacrificing himself to save the other three was not an option to consider either. He made a promise. He did not remember the name or face of the person to whom he made that promise, but he knew she was very important for him. He promised he wouldn't throw away his life just like that, and he would try to love himself. And no matter how much it cost him, even if it took him millennium, he was going to keep that promise.

Therefore, he would have to face the noble phantasm of Berserker of Red head on. Rho Aias was discarded. The coming attack would not be a projectile, but rather a beam of energy. He didn't know if the shield would hold, and yet, several layers would be destroyed, leaving his body in a pitiful state.

The sword of promised salvation was not usable either. In order to use it to its fullest, it required being in the place where it was forged, that is, the Unlimited Blade Works. There was no time to deploy the reality marble, and bringing the sword to reality required a lot of prana. Healing Siegfried had already left him completely dry, and at that time he had his prana reserves almost to the fullest.

With all that, he had no choice but to face fire with fire. He looked at the sword in his hand. The prototype of all swords that select the king. It was undoubtedly the most powerful weapon in his arsenal, and one of the swords he could best replicate because of its close connection to his legend.

"He's right." Archer's voice was accompanied by a heavy sigh. His grip on his blade strained, as he stepped forward to face the gray monster.

"Archer, what are you doing?" Ruler asked him with concern.

"Fix the mess that caused my faction. Stay behind me, I'll take care of this." His firm voice gave no room for doubt.

"One more word of advice, boy." He turned his head to look sideways at Sieg. "If you plan to follow that way, then, never give up. Whatever happens, stay strong and don't lose hope."

Although the encouraging words were addressed to Sieg, the three present nodded. In fact, the three could not help but look at him in amazement. In the face of adversity, he did not falter, and faced it with sheer determination. Determination to save everyone.

His back was upright and firm, giving the feeling that he could carry all the weight of the world. His red mantle waved with the wind, making the image even more epic.

He raised the sword that already accompanied him at the front against Ortenrosse's minions above his head, and began to pump prana into it.

"I don't know what hero you were in life, Berserker of Red, but I'm not letting you take a single innocent life in my clock!"

"The moment arrived." Espartacus began to inflate more and more with the energy accumulated in his body.

Meanwhile, the sword in the hands of King of Fakers wrapped itself in golden light, which began to spread upwards.

"My attack will end it all, and tear the fools to pieces. GO! MY LOVE, EXPLODE!"

Espartacus finally exploded, letting out all the energy accumulated inside him in the form of a huge ray of energy.

"Exterminate the impure. MERODACH!"

Simultaneously, King of Fakers swung his sword forward, firing a great disintegrating beam of light.

Both attacks clashed for a few moments. Merodach's bolt of lightning was small compared to all the energy released by Spartacus. However, the power of the foundation of the sacred right to select the king was superior.

The golden light that burned everything in its path, much more condensed than the noble phantasm of Berserker of Red, pierced the attack and split it in two.

The aftermath of Spartacus' last attack shook the entire battlefield, destroying everything in its path. Fort Yggmillenia suffered some damage despite being so far from the explosion, and even the flying fortress of Assassin of Red staggered.

But there was a small strip that remained intact. When divided in two by Merodach's beam, the location of Astolfo, Jeanne, Sieg and King of Fakers was not reached. The violent energies passed through the sides harmlessly.

Archer planted his blade on the ground to lean on it, as he tried to regain air. His magical reserves were low, but not at a dangerous level. The same could be said of his body. The prolonged fight against Rider of Red, and this last attack, was starting to take its toll.

"Are you all right?"

Astalfo, who had curled up on Sieg and closed his eyes, blinked a couple of times to make sure what he was seeing was real.

"We're alive... We made it!"

"Muh!" There was a choking grunt below him.

"Oh, sorry, my bad." Rider got up off Sieg, and he was able to breathe again.

Jeanne approached Archer and helped him stand up again. "You did it. But you shouldn't do these crazy things so often, Archer of Black."

He could not help but smile ironically. It was not the first time he was told, nor would it be the last. And he was right. It was already the second time she saw him in a pretty deplorable state after rushing to save someone.

"It can't be helped. That's how I am."

Ruler sighed at his answer. "You could have let me help you. I promised to protect the boy, right?" However, despite scolding him, there was a smile on her face.

The conversation was interrupted when Archer received a message from his master.

"What!? The red faction stole the Great Grail!?" His reaction explained everything.

The four turned to look at the Castle of the Yggdmillenia. The Hanging Gardens of Babylon had been placed just above the fort, and the Holy Grail was being transported to the flying fortress.

"It seems I must go to witness the end of this battle." Jeanne set out to run towards the fortress, but was stopped by Archer.

"Let me go with you, Ruler."

"Don't overdo it, you're almost at your limit. You've done enough."

"Limit? My legs and arms can still move. I'll reach my limit when I make sure the Grail doesn't fall into the hands of a bunch magus with questionable intentions."

Jeanne breathed another sigh, and agreed. She knew that trying to convince him would be impossible.

* * *

Fort Yggdmillenia was in chaos. The red faction took advantage of the distraction caused by Spartacus' latest attack to steal the Great Grail. Saber, Lancer, and Caster boarded the flying fortress to try to retrieve it.

The masters of the Black faction gathered to reorganize, and as Darnic had disappeared, Fiore took command. The situation was really bad. The enemy also had been preparing for war for decades.

They'd lost Berseker, Archer was still on his way, and Rider was practically out. Added to that was that their laboratory in the basement had been so damaged by Sieg's incursion that they could not even produce more golems.

All they could do was to trust their servants, and unfortunately, they weren't doing so well either.

Saber of Black was the best man in his fight with Rider of Red. But now, he no longer had Archer's arsenal of anti-immortal weapons, so his chances were considerably reduced.

Caster and his golems could hardly keep up with Archer of Red, and Lancer of Black was quickly being overtaken. Now that he was no longer on Romanian soil but in the domain of Assassin of Red, his power diminished considerably. He could barely stand up to Lancer of Red.

At that moment, Darnic appeared on the scene, and forced his servant to use his noble phantasm, The Legend of Dracula, with a command seal. This caused him to lose his humanity and become a monster according to the other aspect of his legend, a vampire.

With what little sanity he had left, Vlad III lashed out at his master for revenge. But, before he was killed, he used his other two command seals to order him not to die until he got the Holy Grail, and to merge his existence with that of the monster.

Finally, the old magus took control of the body and began to attack everyone who stood in his way to the Grail. He sucked the blood out of the homunculi who had accompanied them, turning them into demons.

Rider of Red attacked him recklessly, and he was almost converted as well if it weren't for Siegfried saving him at the last minute.

From then on, all the servants began to cooperate to overcome such a threat. They couldn't let that monster get the Holy Grail, nor could they let the demons escape to the outside.

Lancer of Black was cornered and tried to retreat, but his escape route was cut off by Ruler and Archer of Black, who had just arrived.

In view of the situation, Jeanne proposed to all the serfs to form a temporary truce to defeat the vampire. They all agreed.

"Under my title as Ruler, Jeanne d'Arc, I order all servants to put an end to this vampire."

The command seals on Ruler's back shone, giving a magical impulse to all the servants.

Saber of Black, Rider of Red and Lancer of Red immediately rushed against the monster. Its ability to disperse their bodies in smoke gave them enough trouble, but the combined attack of the two Archer servants prevented Lancer of Black from escaping. Caster of Black kept its minions at bay.

The stakes were fired from all sides, in a desperate attempt to get rid of arrows and twisted swords. Still, the vampire was quickly overwhelmed by the teamwork of the five servants.

"Leave no dust and disappear, monster." Karna got serious and attacked him with a powerful fire prana burst.

However, despite being burned, Vlad III's body regenerated quickly.

"No! I will not die until I get the Holy Grail!"

The vampires already had a great capacity for regeneration. The command given him by his master before he merged with him only boosted it.

Lancer of Black tried to escape by scattering his body again, but...

"Redeemer!"

The hallway was filled with an aura even more malevolent than that of the monster. A silver sword, wrapped in a purple prana, flew at high speed toward the vampire. Upon reaching him, it exploded, shaking the place.

When the smoke dissipated, the monster could be seen in a deplorable state. His right arm had been destroyed, and half of his body was decomposing. The curse of the sword was consuming him faster than he was regenerating.

"Damn Faker! Why does a nameless servant have so many weapons!" The vampire cried out in anguish, though ironically, that was the question all the servants were asking.

"If you planned this from the beginning, summoning me, a hero who was fighting dead apostles for most of his life was very stupid of you."

"Checkmate." Karna prepared to give him the final blow.

But, something happened and that made him stop all at once. His body began to tremble, and his face twisted in agony. And it wasn't just him. Archer of Red and Rider of Red were the same.

The vampire took advantage of the event and went quickly towards the inside of the fortress.

"After him!" Ruler, Archer of Black and Saber of Black didn't lose a second and ran after him.

Archer shot him several blades, but the vampire avoided them by scattering his body.

"Archer, Saber, do you know why the Red Servants stopped?"

The first to respond was Archer. "Most likely it was the masters, but it doesn't match the timing."

Turning a corner, a trap was activated and a prana beam was fired. The monster managed to evade it and continue on his way, but the three servants had to hide behind the corner.

"Tch, is activated by movement."

"Is it only aiming at us?"

"It looks like that, but we can't let that monster go, there's gonna be a lot of victims." Saber responded in a deathly serious tone.

"Go, I'll take care of the traps." As he said that, Archer traced his black bow again.

Both the servants nodded and raced down the corridor. The twisted swords flew over their heads, intercepting the rays and destroying the prana cannons.

By the time they reached the hallway room, the vampire's body was found reduced to ashes, and traversed by several Black Keys. His executor had been Kotomine Shirou, the master of the red faction Ruler was looking for so much.

"It can't be..." After seeing him for a few moments, Jeanne's face was filled with surprise. Her skill as a servant Ruler had shown her something seemingly impossible.

Upon seeing her, Saber was immediately on guard. The priest had an ominous aura.

"Nice to meet you, Ruler of this occasion. I am the master of the red faction that you seek so much, Kotomine Shirou."

"..." Ruler stared at him speechless

"If you're so surprised, I think you're making me look bad."

Those words pulled her out of her stupor, making her frown. "Never would I have imagined that there were sixteen servants."

"No, you're wrong. I'm a servant, but like you, I'm a Ruler."

"Then, why? If you are a Ruler servant, you should follow the rules of the Holy Grail."

Upon hearing it, Shirou made a complicated face. "Rules? When I followed the rules, I couldn't save anyone. So, if I break the rules, no one will get in the way of my dream."

"What is your goal, Amakusa Shirou Tokisada?"

"You should know it already. I seek the salvation of mankind, Jeanne d'Arc. I will use the Grail to obtain it."

That response surprised both servants. His dream was very similar to that of a certain servant.

"You should know because you are a servant Ruler! We are allowed to come into this world to help the people who live in it. But, as a heroic spirit, you deviate from it, trying to force salvation upon mankind, even knowing that such a thing does not exist."

Jeanne's words angered Shirou. "I was reincarnated sixty years ago in the Third War of the Holy Grail and I waited for this opportunity! Retreating is no longer an option for me."

"Reincarnation? So that's why you're another servant Ruler."

"I won't miss this unique opportunity. No matter who it is, I will eliminate whoever interferes."

"If you don't listen to the prayers of the living, you don't qualify as a heroic spirit."

"It is as you say, Jeanne d'Arc. I am no longer a saint or a heroic spirit. However, if I can still bring the miracle of salvation to mankind... I will do it!"

"What about the other masters of the red faction?"

"They've served their purpose, so I don't need them anymore."

"Just what did you-"

"Don't worry, Ruler." A third voice interrupted the conversation. Seconds later, Assassin of Red materialized next to her master. "Or are you saying that my master went against the rules."

"Assyria's Queen. World's older poisoner. Are you the Assassin of Red, Semiramis?"

"Indeed."

"Are you his accomplice? Or maybe it's your whole plan."

"You think I was the one leading my master down the path of evil? You are a bit off, Ruler. I am a servant and I just follow my Master."

Just then, Archer of Black arrived in the room, along with the servants of the Red Faction and Caster of Black. Archer of Red was the first to speak and did not seem very happy.

"A moment ago, undoubtedly, we had a change of master. And I bet you know something about that, priest."

Semiramis' confident expression shifted to one of anger, but Shirou stopped her before she answered.

"That's true. A few moments ago I had a peaceful conversation with your masters, which resulted in them giving all their command seals to me. In other words, I, Ruler, Amakusa Shirou Tokisada, am now the master of all the servants of the red faction."

Aquilles and Atlanta didn't take it very well, and Rider immediately charged into his new master. Assassin of Red stepped in, blocking his spear with what looked like fish scales. However, the 'shield' broke, and Archer of Red took the opportunity to shoot an arrow in her head.

But, to her surprise, Lancer of Red caught the arrow with his hand.

"Are you saying you accept him as your master, Lancer!?"

"I have questions for him, but he won't be able to answer them if you kill him."

"Thank you so much for that, Lancer." Shirou thanked the servant, though he looked completely calm despite all the hostility pointed at him.

"Don't thank me. I haven't approved this change of teacher yet."

"Well then, as for the war between the black and the red faction, I have a suggestion for it. Surrender now, Siegfried, Avicebron and King of Fakers. It is a very reasonable proposition in view of the current situation."

Siegfried and Archer raised an eyebrow to the unisono, and Caster was the one who said what the three of them had in mind. "Surrender? I'm sorry, but I really don't see how much advantge you have right now.

"Oh? That's funny coming from someone who is trapped inside a beast's belly." Assassin responded in a petulant tone.

"Let's hope that doesn't turn out to be a boulder in its stomach."

"Avicebrom, let's hear your opinion."

"Surrender, huh... pure nonsense. But at the same time it is simple. It seems that you know a lot about the Great Grail."

"I don't know much, I know everything about it."

"I don't need it to get my wish. You could say that our wishes don't overlap. But I have a condition."

"Let's hear it."

"Don't lay a hand on my master. Is that condition acceptable?"

"Selling yourself for your master's sake?"

"Caster, what are you-" The question of Saber was interrupted by such the masked servant.

"Saber, I have my own desire. For the sake of achieving it, I don't mind trampling on my pride and my ethics"

Archer looked at him with an expression that said, 'magus, I never expect anything from them, and yet they continue to disappoint me.'

"And what is your opinion, King of Fakers?" Shirou turned his attention to Archer of Black. Rather, his attention was on him since he arrived. "Your dream is the same as mine. Wouldn't you like to cooperate with me to achieve it?"

All the attention in the room turned to King of Fakers, who kept staring at Shirou. In fact, he had been doing it since he entered the room.

"I see... For a moment I thought you were the same person." Archer whispered to himself.

It was almost impossible for this servant to be the same person as that boy who promised to surpass him. And besides, he wouldn't have given up and decided to entrust his dream to the Holy Grail.

Seeing that it took a while for him to answer, Jeanne's face was filled with concern.

"That our dream is the same? Where did you get that? My dream is to save everyone, something very different from saving 'humanity'. Besides, I don't need any device created by the selfish desires of the magus to achieve it."

Shirou's face in that moment was a poem. Jeanne sighed relieved, and Siegfried looked at him with respect. Despite the tempting proposal of the priest, he did not hesitate for a moment and remained faithful to his ideals.

"Are you saying that, not only are you rejecting the opportunity I'm giving you, but you're also going to get in the way of the search of my dream?"

"That's right. I'm not going to ally myself with someone who gave up and chose the easy way."

They both looked at each other with sharp looks like knives. The tension was palpable in the atmosphere.

At that moment, the conflict of ideals between King of Fakers and Amakusa Shirou Tokisada began.

* * *

**And that's all so far. What do you think? Although hard to imagine, you need to think now that Hanging Gardens of Babylon has a rather important hole on its left.**

**As I said, I decided to focus on the fight that was original to this story, Siegfried and King of Fakers vs Aquilles. Since the black faction has no servant with divinity who can damage Rider of Red, they had to come up with a contingency plan. As Saber of Red does not appear at the beginning of the battle, Siegfried is in charge of helping Archer in his fight against Aquilles, causing Sieg and Berserker of Black to end up facing Mordred as in the original story. The power of Siegfried, combined with the arsenal of King of Fakers, put the hero of the Trojan War in a bind.**

**On the other hand, in this story Sieg acts like Emiya Shirou because of the influence of King of Fakers. As some of you said in the reviews, I don't find much sense in the homunculus deciding to follow the same path without having gone through the same circumstances or having him around to influence him.**

**As for King of Fakers being the one facing the noble phantasm of Spartacus, you may think it was forced, but consider it this way. What's King of Fakers going to give more priority to? A fight to the death without meaning from his point of view, or to go and save the boy who got imprudently into an fight against a servant. Obviously he'll prioritize the latter, and Siegfried knows it too. And so, we also had some development in Jeanne and Sieg's relationships with King of Fakers.**

**And finally, speaking of the last scene, Jeanne worrying about King of Fakers joining the enemy doesn't mean she's already in love. I don't know if I put it right, but for now, Jeanne's feelings towards Archer are one of admiration. Later, in what we might call 'days off between battles' there will be scenes of them two alone. Yes, as in my previous story, King of Fakers will have to take the role of 'psychologist'. Kind of ironic, considering he's the least mentally healthy person on the cast.**

**Without further ado, as always, any constructive review, follow and fav is welcome, and motivates me to continue writing. My next update Will be probably about the other story I started. I couldn't help it, I'm currently reading the light novel of Date a Live, and my head is full of ideas that I need to write. However, if this story has a lot of support, I may make a double update like last time.**

**With this I bid you farewell for now. Now Until we meet again!**


	4. Chapter 3

**See you again, people! This is a little late, but, happy New Year to you all! Here is the next chapter of this story. This time there is not as much action as in the previous chapter, but its fair share remains. You could say that from this chapter the 'bounding moments' will start.**

**As for runelt99's question, what that phrase means is that the weapons used by King of Fakers were obtained during his fight with Gilgamesh in my previous story.**

**Without further ado, let the chapter begin.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own any rigth over Type-Moon or the Fate franchise.**

* * *

Things didn't look too good for us. We were in enemy territory, and although our numbers were more or less on par, it was obvious that the servants of the red faction were monsters in every sense of the word. To that must be added that Caster betrayed us. Well, that was within my expectations from the beginning.

Still, showing weakness was the worst thing to do in this situation. Besides, did the priest really think for a moment that I was going to go over to his side? If he want to save humanity, instead of participating in this pointless bloodbath, he should focus on stopping it. He must be really desperate to resort to this method.

I have to admit that the mention of 'saving humanity' might have made me a little angry. That is basically Alaya's undisputed purpose, and her method of achieving it goes against my ideals. Not only erase the threat, but erase everything that has a minimal relations with it, regardless of whether it is innocent or not.

The irritation of the supposed second servant Ruler increased more and more, showing on his wrinkled face. The atmosphere was getting heavier, and hostility grew with each second.

"Caster, we haven't made the pact yet, but could you help me get rid of them?"

"Understood, master." After saying that, the masked servant snapped his fingers and several golems appeared through the door, completely blocking our only escape route.

Just in case we needed more proof that Caster was already planning to betray us from the beginning.

"If you are going to get in my way, King of Fakers, then perish along with Ruler and Saber of Black."

Ruler and Saber turned as they felt the golems approaching and balanced their weapons with all their might. The strong stream of air they provoked drew them back, but it was not enough to destroy them.

"Ruler!"

Assassin of Red did not stand idly by, and various magic circles formed above her. Several prana chains came out of these, all pointing at Ruler. However...

"Trace on."

At the same time, I traced 20 low-rank noble phantasm and fired them in their direction.

The chains clashed into the blades and destroyed each other, filling the room with explosions. But her chains were outnumbered and some of the swords followed their path to Assasssin and Shirou.

That took her by surprise, and by the time she tried to dodge them, it was too late. She had to be saved by Lancer of Red, who deflected the blades with his golden spear.

That was fine anyway. My goal was to distract them to save time.

Balmung wrapped itself in a dense beam of blue light, and Saber swung it horizontally, obliterating all of Caster's golems.

With the escape route clear, all that was left was to get out of here as fast as possible. But that was not something our enemies would allow.

Karna threw himself at me at extreme speed, intending to pierce me with his spear. I was just going to have time to trace Kanshou and Bakuya, and I wasn't sure if they would withstand the impact.

To everyone's surprise, including me, a red blur crashed between Lancer and me. The sparks flew when the spear clashed with a silver sword.

I recognized the servant before me as Mordred, dressed in casual clothes instead of her armor.

"Heh, this guy has a score to settle with me. Don't interfere with that!" After proclaiming that, she forced Karna to retreat with a powerful prana burst.

"I see, so you're the Knight of Treachery, Mordred." Shirou, who had returned to his calm attitude, had no trouble discerning the identity of Saber of Red.

"Don't say my name so confidently!"

"Do you intend to betray us, Saber?" Assassin asked the newly arrived servant with some irritation.

"Are you retarded? You were the ones who tried to deceive my master. It's obvious you're my enemies!"

"Then, as it's befitting for treason, let's behead you!"

"Try it, you rotten bitch!"

Just before they started fighting each other, a couple of metal objects fell between them. These began to release a lot of smoke, clouding the vision of all present.

Mordred stopped charging and turned to us. "Hey, it's time to get out of here!"

I guess the distraction was set up by her master. Without hesitation, Saber, Ruler and I ran out of the room.

Already when we were in the corridors, Jeanne spoke to us. "We could say that the whole structure of the Reds against the Blacks has collapsed."

"They got the Great Grail, there's nothing the black faction can do now." Saber coldly commented.

"I know. But that's not the problem. Amakusa Shirou told me he's been planning this for 60 years."

"A servant who managed to remain in the world since the Third Holy Grail War..." His situation was exactly the same as that of a certain goldie.

"Perhaps I was summoned to stop all this madness. He has gone against the rules of the heroic spirits. Still..." She stopped in the middle of her speech. From the look on her face, her mind must be conflicted.

In the end, Saber and I set out to deliver the dire news to our masters.

* * *

In the basement of the Yggmillenia fortress, the remaining masters of the Black faction were arguing with the Homunculi who had rebelled. As a traditional magus, Gordes could not accept that his own creations disobeyed him.

"Calm down, Uncle Gordes." Fiore, who remained calm as her thoughts on the subject were not so traditional, stopped the blond magus before things got worse.

"I understand the reason, but what do you intend to do?"

"That's..." The girl who was acting as spokesperson, the same one who was saved by Sieg, hesitated for a few moments.

The sound of a few steps down the stairs interrupted the conversation. The person who appeared surprised everyone. He was none other than Sieg.

"Is everything all right?" This one asked the girl as she approached her.

"You came back."

"You bastard!" On seeing the man for whom he almost lost his servant, Gordes did not react very well.

This one completely ignored it and turned to look at the masters. "I have to say something to you Yggmillenia. I have become a master." As he dropped the bomb, he showed the back of his left hand.

In this they could see a set of black seals with the appearance of a dragon. One of them had been used. Those seals had appeared after his 'transformation' in Siegfried.

"Excuse me, what did you just say?"

"One of your masters was killed by Saber of Red, so I took her place and made a contract with your Rider. I want to make a deal with you as a fellow master.

The Yggmillenia masters continued to stare at him in disbelief, but before they could say anything, someone else entered the basement.

"I finally made it! Please muve aside!" It was Rider of Black. It passed the Black masters and stood next to Sieg. "Sorry for the wait!"

"Rider, what he says is true?"

"About the contract? Yes, it is supertrue! So now I'm on his side." His voice full of sincerity and unconcern gave no room for doubt.

"You don't stop doing things that go beyond our imagination." The homunculus couldn't help but be surprised.

"I think the same."

Then, the negotiations started.

"Do you want to attain freedom? Even without knowing what comes next? Is it even possible for you to accomplish something without following orders?"

Sieg clenched his fist at Gordes' harsh words. "Maybe we don't deserve something like freedom. But, even if there's no rest after this... Even if there is only despair, this is the path I have chosen to follow, and I will not regret it! They don't need to be saved, they just want the freedom to choose. For that reason, it's worth fighting!"

"Freedom... to choose." Fiore was surprised by his speech, especially because it sounded like something Archer would say.

"Don't give me that crap! You want freedom!?"

"Uncle, count to ten."

"Like that's gonna calm me down!"

Fiore set out to repress him if necessary, but both stopped abruptly in their conversation. Right at that moment, Saber and Archer contacted them to give them the bad news.

* * *

As soon as she reached Fort Yggmillenia, Jeanne dragged Sieg to a secluded place to talk alone. And she didn't seem very happy.

Archer at first was willing to help him, but for some reason, his survival instincts told him that it would only make things worse for both of them. So, with a mental apology, he left to accompany Saber as they discussed what to do with their masters.

Caster's goal was clear, to complete his noble phantasm. For that, he needed a talented magus who was quite related to the golems. The only one with such a profile was his master. They couldn't do anything for him, because by the time they started looking for him, he was gone.

With nothing they could do for now, they focused on rebuilding the damaged part of the fort from Espartacus' last attack.

Archer wanted to help the homunculi in the task, but Fiore insisted that he rest since his prana reserves were quite low.

So now he was sitting on the roof, watching the stars. That was something that always helped him relax, besides thinking in swords.

The sound of a few steps made him turn alarmed, but he relaxed seeing that it was Sieg.

"Oh, you were already here, Archer. I guess I'll find another place."

"You don't have to do that. Some of company doesn't hurt."

The homunculus sat next to the servant, and both were silent for a few minutes. The feeling was not uncomfortable, but neither was very talkative.

Finally, it was Archer who started the conversation. "I was told that you became a master, er..."

"Sieg. The name that I chose."

"Sieg, huh? That's a good name. I guess it's in homage to the hero who saved you."

"Yes, I wish I could have paid homage to you, too. I really appreciate the advice you've given me."

"Well, I can't help it. Even I don't remember my own name. But you don't have to thank me either, I helped you because I wanted to. If you want to thank me, start valuing your own life more.

"I'll keep that in mind."

"So, you decided to officially participate in the war, didn't you?"

"Yeah. Even if Ruler insisted that I live a peaceful life, I couldn't do it while all my brothers were sacrificed or forced to fight."

Seeing his face full of determination, Archer sighed. "If that is the path you have chosen, then I will not stop you. However, I will warn you that you may end up like me."

The atmosphere became heavy at the time. Although Sieg did not know Archer's story, he knew that most heroes did not have a good ending. Siegfried and Jeanne d'Arc were good examples.

But, as if he had been waiting for the right moment, Astolfo materialized next to them both.

"What's so serious about? Get up on those long faces! You're going to turn gray if you're like this all the time."

They both rolled their eyes, and then Astolfo realized the Little detail that Archer's hair was already white.

"Oops. Anyway, what were you talking about with Ruler, master?" Both Rider and Archer looked at Sieg curiously.

"She was testing my resolve. After all, when you go into a battle, you have to be prepared to get hurt at least."

"I see, so she was worried about you."

Upon hearing it, Archer and Sieg bowed their heads in confusion. Seeing such density, Astolfo took a step back.

"It can't be... I expected it from my master, but from you, Archer..."

"What do you mean? I just find it odd that Ruler was just worried about him when she seemed pretty angry."

Astolfo put a hand on his face and sighed.

The conversation was interrupted by a huge crash accompanied by a jolt. Astolfo lost his balance and almost fell off the roof.

The three looked in the direction from which it came, and saw a colossal-sized golem who had just crossed the outer wall of the castle. It was humanoid-shaped, with a sort of horns on its back, and some parts that shone with a greenish hue. And on his shoulder was a person they recognized immediately. Caster.

Sieg and Astolfo ran towards the golem, while Archer looked for a better place to shoot from.

The first two arrived in the courtyard, when a homunculus was taking Caules away from the golem. Sieg's eyes opened as he discovered why. In the golem's body, several homuncules were being absorbed to steal his vital energy.

"Caster! So it was you!"

"Rider? I'm glad to see you're okay." Sarcasm was very present in his voice.

"What do you think you're doing!?"

"I will use my perfect noble phantasm, Golem Keter Malkuth, to bring salvation to this world."

"¿Are you crazy!? That pile of filth is not going to bring salvation to anyone!"

"Insolence. They are right when thet say you have no reason in you."

"Precisely! So I'm not afraid of you."

"I see. You're another curse in this world."

Astolfo and Sieg prepared for the impending battle, only to stop when a silver projectile flew swiftly over them in the direction of Caster.

He reacted quickly and made a magic circle appear in front of him. However, the 'arrow' went through the magical circle as if it were not there, and pierced the spiritual core of Caster. It was a completely lethal attack with the ultimate weapon against magus from King of Fakers, Retriever.

Beneath Caster's mask came a great deal of Caster, as his spirit origin began to collapse. Before it, he turned and looked at a nearby tower, where Archer stood with his large black bow.

"You, Archer? Are you aiming at me? Weren't you saying you wanted to save everyone?"

"People like you make that really hard. Besides, you shouldn't be here in first place."

"Still, even if you kill me, my noble phantasm won't stop. My role here is over. I have activated the golem, and I have no regrets. I leave this to you, Keter Malkuth. You can definitely create paradise on earth!"

With those last words, Caster vanished, and the golem released a roar that shook the entire castle. He sank his hand into the earth, and drew a huge stone slab in the form of a sword. It looked like a larger version of the Berserker's axe-sword of the Fifth Holy Grail War.

Archer snapped his tongue. Killing the magus was the best method he knew to interrupt his mystery, but this was not one of those cases.

The giant swung his improvised weapon toward Fiore, who was still atop one of the fortress's roofs with his mystic code. Luckily, Archer didn't have to worry since Rider picked her up quickly with his hypogriffin.

The golem tried to reach them as they flew, frantically swinging his blade, but could do nothing against the speed of Rider's mount.

One of the swings ended up pointing towards Sieg, who was still in the courtyard of the fortress. The homunculus saw death descend upon him, but he had no time to evade it.

But, the sword stopped just above him, causing a huge shock. In front of him were Ruler and Saber, holding all the weight with their weapons.

"You must also retire!"

"Ruler?"

"This giant transforms the world in an unchecked way. It twists reality itself. It's a giant that changes the world. That's beyond the scope of the Holy Grail War, so it is my enemy!"

The twisted swords soon landed on the head of the golem. All of them low-range noble phantasm overloaded with prana that exploded upon collision. The golem shook, allowing Ruler and Saber to reject his weapon.

Both of the servants rushed down each arm of the giant until they reached its head, and struck it with a tremendous blow that made it stagger backwards.

The giant saw itself overpowered, and tried to escape into the forest where it came from.

"You are not going away!"

But his escape route was cut off by Jeanne and Siegfried.

Archer continued to bombard it with broken phantasm. Its two eyes were destroyed, as was the arm itused to try to cover itself.

But suddenly, the giant began to regenerate at an incredible rate. It was not surprising with the huge amount of prana that came off.

"According to ancient legends, the primordial man would transform his surroundings into the Eden." Fiore commented as she watched as new plants continued to grow on the ground around.

"A unique and autonomous aura, huh? What a pain in the ass!"

Although Archer's rain of swords did not stop, the giant continued to regenerate.

"Nobody can bleed in paradise. Its wounds are denied."

Saber and Ruler also began to attack the giant. Time was against they. If the space around itwas completely transformed, the golem would be unstoppable.

But the giant grew faster and stronger as the transformation was completed. They needed to destroy it in one stroke with a noble phantasm.

"Rider, can any of your noble phantasm deal with that thing?" Fiore tried her luck with the servant at her side."

"Unfortunately, no." The answer came out instantly.

"At least pretend you thought about it a little!"

Discarding that option, Fiore thought of his own servant. Archer's noble phantasm was unknown, they only knew that it had healed the heart of Saber. The projectile he used to damage the enemy's fortress might work, but she didn't know how much prana it required.

_"Archer, can you think of any way to defeat him?"_

_"Maybe I have one, but I'll need some time."_

Archer's been thinking it over. Firing one of his most potent weapons, not knowing if he could destroy it in one stroke, and with his prana reserves already depleted, was not a good option.

The problem was the area around the giant, as once transformed, the giant would be invincible within it. It was the same principle as a reality marble. So, if we move the giant to another area outside its domain, then it could be defeated. With the plan already armed, Archer jumped off the tower to land next to Ruler.

"Ruler, I need you to bring another servant. Saber, distract it for a few moments."

"I see you have a plan."

They both nodded. Saber lunged at the giant to gain its attention, while Ruler raised her flag.

"Saber of Red, Jeanne d'Arc summons you to this battle!"

Said servant materialized near them, in her casual clothes and Clarent leaning on her shoulder.

"Here I am, Ruler! What do you want from me?" She spoke casually as she watched the battlefield. In the background you could see the titanic battle between Siegfried and the giant. The forest chunks flew with every clash.

"Ask Archer."

She looked at that servant and frowned.

"Saber of Red, I know it's a lot to ask, but let's put aside our business. Our priority now is to stop that thing."

She remained silent for a few moments, until finally she shrugged. "Fine, let's get along. What do I have to do?"

"Once I finish reciting my aria, I'll need you and Saber of Black to give it the final blow."

"What do you mean by reciting your aria?" Jeanne asked confused.

He simply stretched his right arm forward and leaned his left hand on his forearm. His gaze was fixed on the golem.

"_I am the bone of my sword."_

With those power-filled words, the ground at Archer's feet was flooded with prana.

"_Steel is my body, and fire is my blood."_

"_I have created over a thousand blades."_

_"Unaware of loss,"_

_"no aware of gain."_

Archer began to sweat. The giant's own aura tried to repel his spell, causing it to take even more effort.

_"Whistood pain to create weapons, chasing an ever distant dream."_

With the aria almost complete, the giant recognized Archer as its primary enemy. Its paradise was being sullied by that strange spell. Saber of black did not stand back and stood between them, stopping as he could the immeasurable strength of the giant.

_"There are no regrets, this is the path I chose."_

_"My whole life was... Unlimited Blade Works!"_

With the chanting finished, the illusory fire exploded from Archer's feet, enveloping all present and marking the boundary of the spell.

The paradise created by Keter Malkuth was over written to resemble the inner world of King of Fakers.

All were stunned to see the landscape in which they now stood. A barren hill in which no life grew, quite the opposite of Eden. The sky was a constant sunset, covered by a mist of rust. And, as far as the eye could see, there were swords, of all shapes and sizes, mundane and noble phantasms. An infinite number of them. There weren't two alike, but they all had something in common. They were rusty.

It was, in short, a breathtaking yet depressing landscape.

"Where the hell are we?" Mordred expressed the question in everyone's minds, in her own way. Even the giant had stopped completely confused.

The only one who knew this hill was Fiore, due to the cycle of dreams. Her face was a mixture of sadness and understanding.

"A reality marble!? One of the greatest magecraft that allows the user to rewrite reality with the image of the user's inner world. Archer, don't tell me..." Jeanne's reflections were cut by Archer.

"Yes, this is my soul. But there is no time for explanations. I can't keep this up for long, so you have to destroy it now that it's vulnerable."

"Understood." Saber of Black, who had regrouped with them prepared to deploy his noble phantasm.

"Wait a minute. Ruler!" On the other hand, instead of getting ready, Mordred stopped everyone and speak to Jeanne.

"What do you want?"

"My pay. My help is not free. Give me two of your command seals."

"Absolutely not!"

"ROOOOOOAAAAAAR!" As they spoke, the golem had already assembled and started charging towards them.

"Tch. If you're going to start negotiating, do it quickly!" As he said that, Archer gave the mental order for an immense number of swords to fly into the golem.

The giant stopped advancing and began to swing its sword frantically to try to deflect them, but it was in vain. It was in the center of a storm of swords. Blades came from all angles, crashing into its body.

But the damage was only superficial. If they wanted to destroy it completely, they would have to attack its core. Archer himself would, but all his prana was being destined to impose his inner world upon the paradise of primordial man, so he could only throw the noble phantasm and not use them. That's why he needed the help of the two servants Saber.

"You can do it. Masters can do it. There's no way you can't."

"But I can't give you that many."

"Then you can always ask the homunculus here to transform into a copy of Saber of Black, or I'm wrong?"

From the look on Jeanne's face, and how her breathing stopped, Mordred knew she had hit a nerve.

"I can only give you one at the most."

"Okay, One then. Give me one."

"I'll give it to you later! For now..." Ruler's preoccupied gaze shifted back to Archer. This one was sweating a lot, and his face was turning pale.

"Okay. Archer, you time it. Saber, prepare yourself. Is time to cut this giant down." Mordred shouted her commands as she aimed Clarent at the giant and materialized her armor.

Just at that moment he released another huge roar, repelling all the swords flying in its direction.

The two Sabers positioned themselves on Archer's side. He raised his left arm in the air and called the weapon containing the most powerful technique he knew. Berserker's axe-sword. His body successfully reproduced the strength of the black giant, and prepared to rush forward.

"I will leave his core exposed. You keep up with me."

The ground cracked when Archer jumped at the giant at high speed. It responded by swinging its huge stone sword in the direction of its priority enemy. Its intention was clear, to destroy the servant who denied its paradise.

"_Trigger off." _Upper arm, collarbone, windppipe, temple, diaphram, rib, testicles, and thigh. Archer aimed at the eight targets in his mind, and triggered the technique of Greece's greatest hero.

"_Set, Nine Lives Blade Works."_

With godspeed, the eight attacks overlapped. The giant staggered backwards, with more than eighty percent of his body shattered. Its core remained intact, so it would regenerate over time, but Archer's goal was met, as it was fully exposed.

Two figures quickly passed Archer's sides, while he was dropping to the ground. The two knights leapt into what was left of the giant. Their auras, red and blue, merged into one.

"A simple puppet who only follows orders will not stand before me!" Mordred began pumping prana into Clarent, and it was wrapped in a huge beam of red lightning.

"Now that I have fulfilled my desire to save someone of my own free will, it is time to go further and save everyone!" Siegfried turned the parts of Balmug's handle, and it wrapped itself in a large beam of blue light.

"CLARENT BLOOD ARTHUR!"

"BALMUNG!"

Both knights swung their swords forward, firing anti-army disintegrator beams. The remains of the giant, including the core, did not last a few seconds. It was completely devastated.

Both Saber landed among the flames and ashes, with their upright postures and their swords held high.

"That's what I call overkill, you filthy lot! Go find your Eden somewhere else!" Mordred announced victorious as Unlimited Blade Works began to collapse.

Moments later, everyone was in the forest again. They had finally succeeded, they had stopped Caster's plan to transform the world.

Astolfo landed with his Hypogriffin where they were all regrouping. All but one.

"Ha... ha... ha..." Archer collapsed on his knees, struggling to breathe. Steam poured from his mouth.

Maintaining the Unlimited Blade Works had already drained him almost completely, and using Nine Lives Blade Works forced his body to the limit even as a servant. The weird thing was that he was still conscious.

"Archer!"

Both Jeanne and Fiore approached him quickly with worried faces, the second using her mystic code.

"I'm fine, you don't have to worry about me."

He tried to stand up, but his legs trembled and Jeanne had to lean him on her shoulder.

"Don't give me the 'I'm fine' of all men. It's obvious you're not fine."

"Well, yes. I've had better days. But at least it was worth it."

They both sighed deeply. He really was hopeless. He even continued to use his own prana reserves to avoid causing trouble to his master.

* * *

With the problem resolved, they all returned to Fort Yggdmillenia, and met to discuss what they would do in the coming days.

The red faction had fled with the Great Grail, and Shirou would soon use it to get his wish. The problem with the matter was that, the Grail grants the desires in the way that the one who asks for them knows, so, depending on how Amakusa Shirou asks for the salvation of humanity, that can end up doing more harm than good.

With more than half of the black faction's servants dead, or stray in the case of Assassin, they ended up making a deal with the master of Saber of Red to cooperate. They agreed that they would raid the flying fortress in three days.

And with that resolved, all eyes pointed to Archer. Something that was not surprising. Even the master of Saber of Red witnessed through her eyes the reality marble of Archer, a magecraft that humans who could develop it can be counted with the fingers of the hands.

He simply stepped out of the way by explaining how it worked, without explaining how he got it. He would have had to tell them all about his past, and they didn't have time for that, nor did he remember clearly. Besides, with what they saw, they could get an idea.

Ruler gave Sisigou a command seal as they had agreed during the fight, and she also restored the command seal that Sieg used to transform into Siegfried in his fight with Mordred.

As they theorized, those seals represented the power of Siegfried within him, so that they were over could not be good. From there, they all went to rest.

Kairi and his servant returned to their base at Trifas, and Ruler decided to stay at the fort Yggmillenia.

Everyone had seen the inner world of King of Fakers, in short, they took a look at his soul. With that, the question of where he got so many weapons was solved, but that was the least important.

With such a view, Sieg understood what Archer meant by ending up like him. Just thinking about it made his heart shake. He followed his ideals to the end, and ended up like this. It was truly admirable that he followed them even after his death. Anyone would have given up, but his determination to save them all remained until the end.

Jeanne was in an internal debate. The boy who had suddenly entered the Holy Grail War worried her. She promised that she would make sure that he had a peaceful life, and in the end the boy ended up putting his life at risk, ironically under the influence of the same person to whom she made the promise.

However, what persisted in her head was the image of that sad landscape. To have a reality marble, such an inhuman magecraft, was a clear indication of a huge psychological distortion, And he only had to put two and two together to know that such distortion was the reason why Archer prioritized others before himself.

She'd seen signs of it every time she was around him. She may not have been very good at mathematics or language, but she knew how to distinguish a person's character. Even when Archer told her he was okay when he wasn't, it wasn't because he wanted to act tough or anything like that. She knew he just didn't want them to worry about him.

But the most worrying thing was the meaning of that landscape. A person who devoted his whole life to making others happy, and although he managed to fulfill his dream if that golden sword was any indication, he ended up dying completely alone on that hill of swords.

Their lives were really similar, but in turn there were several differences. She decided to abandon her normal life by hearing God's distressed whispers. On the other hand, he never had a normal life, although it was his decision not to interact with anyone else, you could say that from the beginning he was always alone. Even if she was betrayed at the end of her life by everyone she knew, at least she had her Lord and her faith so she could lean on and not fall into despair. Instead, he followed his path of self-destruction with no one to lean on, and ended up acting more like a sword than a person.

All that, along with her vision of his future, caused her emotions she didn't quite understand. Was it fear? Pity? Or perhaps, were they the feelings of Laeticia?

* * *

I decided that sleep would be a good idea to regain my energies. Although the act itself does not help a servant to recover prana, it reduced the in cost to mantain my existence to a minimum.

What I didn't expect was to have a dream about Fiore's past. I knew that the cycle of dreams worked on both sides of the contract, but since servants in general do not need to sleep, I had overlooked it.

In her childhood, her parents bought a dog. She treated him like her pet and ended up becoming fond of him. That would be a completely normal story, if she wasn' t the heir to a family of magus.

Finally what was seen to come happened. Her parents ended up sacrificing the dog for a ritual I didn't understand. Something completely inhuman, but for a family of magus it was something of the most normal. In fact, I'm sure Fiore already knew that was going to happen, and yet she was gentle with the poor animal.

She initially held her brow and did not shed a single tear, but when they were burying the animal, she could not resist it any longer and ended up collapsing in tears.

I woke up at dawn, and immediately went to speak with Caules, my master's brother.

It was obvious that such a good-hearted person was not made to become a magus king. How little I was with her already made me realize that she, however competent she was, could not take the twisted approach of 'the end justifies the means' that most magus have.

To my surprise, he agreed with me, and we agreed to leave the decision to her. According to him, the figure of the younger brother these days was in charge of supporting the older sister in everything he could.

Caules was, by all accounts, as good a person as his sister. I guess my prejudice towards the magus was totally wrong here. At least I know when I'm gone, Fiore will be in good hands.

By the time everyone was up, I joined Astolfo and Sieg to help treat the wounded homunculi. I had to be really insistent as Rider was hell-bent on me resting.

Saber also dragged his master to help as well. Although at first he was quite reluctant, in the end I agreed. Underneath that grumpy personality, there was also a good person. You had to work hard to find it, but it was there.

If you thought about it, the really traditional magus of the Yggmillenia family were the ones who had perished before.

I volunteered to bring in all the mystical codes necessary for the treatment of prana fatigue homuncules. My knowledge of first aid was not very extensive, and that had already been taken care of by the homunculi specialized in it. Like the disaster of a magus I was, this was one of the few things I could help out with.

When I was coming back, I ran into Ruler. She had changed to her casual clothes, which looked like a business suit.

"Oh, good morning, Ruler."

"Good morning, Archer..." She greeted me back as looking away.

She seemed a little nervous, something rather strange, and her face was quite complicated. I can only guess that seeing Unlimited Blade Works affected her much more than I expected.

"Anyway, why aren't you resting? Yesterday you could barely keep standing."

"I can't stand idly by while others are making their efforts. Also, I'm a servant. One night's rest is enough to be in full condition again."

She sighed at my response. She was doing that a lot of times when I was near.

"Then, allow me to help you."

"But..." Seeing the look she gave me, I realized that continuing what I was saying was not a good idea.

I ended up giving her about half of what I was carrying and we headed back to where Gordes was.

When we deliver them, he fired us dry, and with that he had nothing left to do. With so many people working together, this was going pretty fast.

Looking back at Ruler, I thought it was a good time to talk about the issue I had in my head since I was summoned into this war.

"You got a moment, Ruler? I'd like to talk to you about something."

She thought about it for a few moments, until she finally responded. "Well, yes. I don't have any issues that require my attention at the moment. But what do you want to talk about?"

"Of the reason why I could be summoned in the first place."

I don't know if it was my totally serious tone that convinced her, or if she was going to accept my request anyway, but the thing is, we ended up in her room. In mine would probably be Fiore, and I didn't want to overload her with any more business.

She was already busy dealing with the paperwork that came with the death of three magus kings. The crest of Rider's master could still be recovered, but those of Darnic and the master of Caster were lost, that of the first when he merged his existence with Lancer and was subsequently exorcised, and the body of the second merged with the Keter Malkuth, which we destroyed yesterday.

"So what do you mean by the reason you could be summoned?" Ruler started the conversation bluntly. Her former nervousness had vanished and now she had an expression just as serious as mine.

"As you may have noticed, I am not a conventional heroic spirit. Actually, work for the Counter-Force"

When I dropped the bomb, I expected her to ask why a Counter-Guardian was called in a Holy Grail War.

"Why...?"

What I didn't expect was for her seriousness to vanish and look at me in utter shock. I assumed she knew what it meant, but her reaction caught me off guard.

"Eh?"

"Why did you end up being a Counter-Guardian?"

"Well, in my last moments of life, the World appeared to me and offered me a deal. Alaya would fulfill my wish, in exchange for serving her after death. I ended up doing the stupid thing of accepting it, but I wasn't in the best condition to think either. I was bleeding out after my fight with the Primate Murder."

The mention of the beast of calamity made her eyes open for a few moments, but she did not delve into that subject and kept asking.

"And what did you ask in return?"

"To be able to continue to pursue my dream even after my death."

Her expression relaxed a little, but it was still complicated. "So, you are doomed to an eternity of relentless servitude."

"If you put it like that, it really sounds pretty grim, but it's not really that bad. Because of my desire, instead of being invoked to 'clean' threats against humanity when there is nothing else to do and the things are already screawed, I am invoked to stop them, without having to eliminate everything related to it."

With that I got her to relax a little, but unfortunately, I had to pick up on the point that I wanted to talk about in the beginning.

"And that brings me to why I was summoned. Regardless of whether the catalyst used is closely related to my legend, I can only be summoned when humanity is in danger".

It didn't take long for her to connect the dots. "Not only did the Holy Grail detect that something was wrong, but the World did too. That means, the wish that Amakusa Shirou plans for the Grail to fulfill is going to put humanity in check."

"That's the only conclusion I could come to. So, Ruler, I want to work with you to stop that man."

She blinked for a few moments, before coughing and returning to her former serious expression.

"All right. I, Servant Ruler of the Great War of the Holy Grail, Jeanne d'Arc, agree to work with you, King of Fakers, and thus the rest of the black faction, to stop Amakusa Shirou."

I felt my lips tilt slightly upward, and to play along with her formality, I reached out my hand for a handshake.

She stared at my hand for a few seconds, her cheeks starting to turn red.

Huh? I screwed up again? Dealing with a woman really isn't my thing.

"Is't wrong to shake hands? Then excuse me-"

"No! It's fine. You just caught me by surprise." Before I could take my hand away, she grabbed it quickly and shook it while laughing uncomfortably.

I tried to make sense of that reaction in my mind, but I failed, spectacularly in fact. Before I could keep thinking about it, I heard my master's voice through our bond.

"_Archer, I need you to come to the living room. I have something to talk to everyone about. If you run into her on the way, let Ruler know that I also require her presence."_

"_Understood, master."_

"Well, it looks like my master wants us all in the living room to talk about something. It seemed quite important, so we'd better go as soon as possible."

"You go first. I'll catch up with you right away."

"Okay."

With that, I left the room to head for the living room. At that moment I didn't realize the worried look that stuck in my back as I was leaving.

* * *

Setting aside the strange feelings she felt a few moments ago, Jeanne sank into her thoughts. They had to be from Laeticia. Otherwise, she couldn't explain why she was nervous about taking a man to her room, or shaking his hand.

Her thoughts were diverted to the part of the conversation where Archer revealed he was a Counter-Guardian. At that moment, her ability of revelation was activated, showing her a vision of Archer in what you could say was his 'work'.

Although he was completely honest in saying that it could be worse, she would be lying if she said that what she saw was not sad. The hero who devoted his whole life to others and ended up dying alone on the top of a hill of swords, didn't even have the rest of death. Even that was taken from him.

She couldn't help but feel sorry for him, and at the same time, admiration. Admire him for not breaking and standing firm on his ideals all that time.

She knew that if he realized what she was feeling, he would probably say something like 'someone like me doesn't deserve something like that'.

She forced herself to do all that aside. At this point, if she could do anything to help him, it was to keep focusing on solving this whole mess.

Resuming her seriousness , she left her room and followed the same way that King of Fakers took.

* * *

**And here comes this chapter. What do you think? Did you expect to see the Unlimited Blade Works so soon? If Jeanne is going to fall in love with King of Fakers, then she will fall in love with him as he is. And for that, seeing his soul is the first step.**

**Well, unlike the original story, this time Sieg doesn't have to transform for the second time, since Siegfried himself was present at the fight. I guess I don't have to say what this will do to him after the war.**

**In this chapter I put a few references, something I hadn't done in a while. The handshake scene is a reference to the scene of chapter two of the anime of Fate/Stay night Unlimited Blade Works where Shirou and Saber shake hands. I also put some hidden reference to my other ongoing story, which I will certainly not be long in updating as the chapter is almost over.**

**And it should be clarified that the timidity and nervousness of Jeanne if they are provoked by the body that is possessing, that is, Laeticia. It's not about her being dense, for the moment. The only one dense is still Archer, even though it sounds really redundant.**

**Without further ado, as always, any constructive review, follow and fav is welcome, and motivates me to continue writing. The exams are already close, so it will take me a while to update.**

**With this I say goodbye for now. Until we meet again!**


	5. Chapter 4

**See you again, people! Exams are over, so here's the next chapter of this story. I warn you that this chapter will not have much action, but will have quite dialogue and talks about ideals.**

**As for Fiore leaving her heiress position, that's complicated. Basically because the one who knew the method of transplanting the crest quickly was Chiron, and well, he's not here and King of Fakers' knowledge of crests focuses more on counteracting and destroying them than anything else.**

**Without further ado, let the chapter begin.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own any right over Type-Moon or the Fate franchise.**

* * *

After an all but pleasant talk with their new master, Lancer of Red, Rider of Red and Archer of Red had gone out to one of the balconies of Hanging Gardens of Babylon. The place was in an awkward silence.

They had just accepted Amakusa Shirou Tokisada as their master, but that was because they had no better options to begin with. The priest gave they a bad feeling, always acting so sweet and pleasant, and then having the other masters of the red faction locked in an isolated chamber, in a coma induced by one of Assassin's poisons.

It seemed that the man became so obsessed with his dream that he no longer cared what method to use to achieve it. And the way he said he would make the Great Grail accomplish it didn't sound very encouraging.

They talked about their desires and the reason they were participating in the Holy Grail War. Archer wanted to create a world in which all children were raised with love, and Rider wanted to be able to continue living as a hero. As for Lancer, he just wanted to carry out the will of the master who summoned him, but agreed to cooperate with Shirou as long as he could fight Saber of Black again, or the homunculus who inherited his power, or perhaps both at once.

The priest simply smiled and said that their wishes were compatible with his, so they should have no trouble cooperating.

What really irritated them, especially Archer, was that Assassin laughed at their wishes. Any of them didn't like the harpy and manipulative woman. Saber of Red had betrayed them basically because of her.

Rider, being the most cheerful of the three, decided to break the tense silence.

"You know, I'd like to be the one to fight Archer of Black in the next battle."

Karna's stoic expression changed to one with a slight interest as she looked at the Greek hero.

"I can see why. Although we only met for a short time, I could see it in his eyes as he talked about his dream with the priest. The eyes of a true hero. In a sense, he's pretty much like Saber of Black."

"At least, although his dream is very similar to that of Amakusa Shirou, he did not seem so ominous and unpleasant." Atalanta practically snarled when she referred to her new master.

"However, there was something very strange about him. Unlike Saber, who seemed to enjoy our fight, he seemed more of an emotionless machine. He was just fighting to beat me, and there was no pride in his swords. That's why I want to fight him again, but this time, like two proud heroes."

Karna simply nodded in approval, while Atalanta simply grunted and continued to stare at the landscape, still sullen at the previous conversation.

The silence this time did not last long when Caster of Red entered the balcony at a brisk pace.

"Greetings my fellows, and ah witness this wonderful weather." As he said that, the writer headed for the railing and leaned on it.

Achilles' expression hardened instantly. "Caster, did you know about that?"

"What do you mean?"

"Amakusa Shirou's plan, of course."

"Ah that. "We're such staff. As dreams are made on, and our little life is rounded with a sleep." And as for that, of course I knew." At the end of his answer, Caster turned around dramatically.

"Is he sane?" Atalanta asked squinting.

"Sane or not, does it really matter? He went through suffering and despair to reach this conclusion. In which case, I will spare no effort to make that happen."

"I am quite aware that you are a screw loose, but I will ask you anyway. Why are you helping Shirou?"

Caster showed a bold smile. "Isn't that obvious? Because it's interesting! It's the salvation of humanity we're talking about! The salvation of the six billion lives in the world! Not to mention that he is not a saint! He lost his fight, and all with it, but he does not despise or abandon people! That must be how it is to save humanity!"

The three servants stared at Caster in white as he apparently finished his passionate discourse. But, he did not stop there.

"Or, that's what I thought at first."

That line did raise an eyebrow on the present servants, so Caster smiled and proceeded to elaborate.

"Fate orchestrated this meeting. The other side in this war summoned an existence very much like that man. King of Fakers, the hero who achieved the miracle of saving them all. It's really a shame that his legend was eclipsed by the legend of King Arthur. Although it was rather incomplete, I really thought it was a good story. A man who had nothing, no special offspring, no talent, no gift, only had his ideals, and yet he made his place on the throne of heroes. He lived his whole life to make others happy, and although he managed to fulfill his dream, the only thing he got in return was to die alone on a hill of swords."

That was really enlightening for the three servants. With that detailed explanation, they finally managed to discern the true identity of Archer of Black.

"And despite all that, he continues to pursue his ideals even after his death. They are really two very similar men. And yet both have rejected each other. While Amakusa Shirou seeks the miracle of the salvation of mankind with de Great Grail, King of Fakers wants to obtain the miracle of saving everyone with his own hands. This is much more interesting than I anticipated! I will be able to witness the inevitable clash of these two men with similar ideals and different methods! Who will have more determination to achieve his dream!"

* * *

That same morning, Rider of Black, Archer of Black, Ruler and Caules had gone to Trifas to investigate.

At the meeting prior to which Fiore had called everyone, she showed them some newspapers showing that Assassin of Black had been killing more magus in recent days.

This, together with the fact that Archer and Fiore could not remember Assassin's appearance or noble phantasm, made them decide to get down to work to solve that problem as soon as possible.

Archer tried to search his inner world for any weapons that might belong to Jack the Ripper, but looking for a weapon at the Unlimited Blade Works without having any clue would take days at best.

And here they were now, investigating the bodies of the magus. With a little hypnosis from Caules and Ruler, they posed as detectives.

Jeanne and Astolfo went down to the basement of the house where their two companions were. The first wore her formal purple suit, while Rider wore a white purple striped T-shirt under a lilac jacket, with matching boots and a black short skirt and long stockings. In short, a very feminine outfit.

Down there, besides Archer and Caules, was the body of a middle-aged man, tied to a chair and with a hole in his chest. His face was frozen in an expression of immense agony and pain.

"Here also? What cruelty." After saying that, Jeanne put her hands together in a prayer for the poor soul.

"well? Did you find any clues?" Rider asked in one of his odd moments of seriousness.

"With this we finished investigating the eight. They all died the same way, all of them had their hearts ripped out." Caules responded as he got up from finishing inspecting the body.

"Same thing here. Sadist."

"There is no doubt that this Assassin's handiwork. But there is something strange here. The heart is understandable as they are surely trying to replenish their prana reserves, but he was brutally tortured." Archer spoke next to Caules, with his hand stroking his chin as he thought.

"Some of those we checked were also tortured. Though not all."

"That's the thing. Why weren't all of them tortured?"

"Doesn't Assassin feed off people's fear before they die?"

"Then everyone would have been tortured."

"No time?"

"That's just as unlikely. We're already on the defensive. They had plenty of time."

"The only thing I can think of is that they were trying to get information out of them, but why?"

"There is no other way. I'll check his residual memories." With that said, Caules prepared for the ritual.

"What is that?"

"As I understand it, it's a way to relive the man's last moments." Archer answered Astolfo's question with his limited knowledge.

Astolfo simply nodded, but after looking at Archer for a few moments he showed a mischievous smile.

"That looks pretty good on you, Archer."

In fact, instead of his usual combat suit, Archer was wearing a black tuxedo, with matching trousers and tie, a white shirt and fancy shoes.

This one raised an eyebrow. "I wear this because you insisted, but I still think I look weird."

"Don't say that. Ruler here says you look very elegant."

For some reason that Archer didn't understand, Jeanne blushed and looked at Rider in panic. "R-Rider! That's not true!"

"But is what you really think, isn't it?"

"Well..."

"Ehem!" An exaggerated cough from Caules interrupted the conversation between the two servants. "Anyway. Although it's risky, it's worth it."

The magus sat in a chair in front of the corpse, and with everything ready, he began to scream from the bottom of his throat and to wriggle. His expression was practically the last that the deceased had put, while saliva dripped from his mouth.

"Hey, is this normal? This definitely doesn't look normal to me." Rider asked concerned about the boy's well-being.

"I guess he's experiencing the immense pain the victim felt in his last moments. Assassin really went out of his way with the torture."

After a few minutes that became eternal, Caules finally spoke a few words. "I know... I know them all. I know... I'll tell you all."

Seeing that Caules kept repeating the same words, Archer decided to end the ritual by following the instructions he was given. He took the bucket of cold water he had prepared and poured it over him.

It seemed to take the magus out of its state of shock and bring him back to reality.

Damn it, I tapped in too long. Did you find anything out?"

"You said a few words. As I assumed, he was tortured to get information out of him. 'I know all of them'"

"'I know all of them'? What does that mean?"

"I don't know. Is there anything important that this person knew?"

Caules reviewed the data they had about the man, and his eyes widened with horror. He quickly pulled out his cell phone, and with some help from Archer's structural grasp, they managed to call Fiore's phone.

Without even waiting for the answer from the other side, the boy began to scream. "Fiore, run! Assassin is there! They were looking for a way to break into the castle! One of the victims knew the code to deactivate the alarm!"

A few seconds went by, and there was no answer. "Huh? No signal? Archer!"

That servant didn't even need to be told. He immediately left the house, and with a powerful prana burst that even cracked the ground, he practically flew in the direction of Fort Yggmillenia.

He knew that Saber had stayed there just in case, but the uneasy he felt through his bond with his master gave him a very bad feeling.

* * *

Fort Yggmillenia had been engulfed by a dense fog. This appeared to be toxic, as the homunculus standing guard outside fell unconscious quickly.

Sieg and Saber took everyone they could to a room that Gordes sealed so the fog wouldn't come in. Yet, despite their efforts, there were some who did not did it.

That angered Sieg. To see his comrades again cruelly murdered was heartbreaking.

However, all three realized that someone was missing. They hadn't found Fiore anywhere.

Assassin had cornered her, and the heiress of the Forvedge family had barely managed to escape through the window of her room with the help of her mystic code.

But, she couldn't get very far. Jack the ripper cut off one of the metal arms with her knives, and Fiore fell helpless to the ground. The little girl stood in front of the master with a smile and pointed one of her knives at her.

"Well then, bye-bye."

She prepared to balance the knife, but stopped and jumped back quickly.

A silver blur crashed where Assassin had been a moment earlier. Siegfried stood imposing in front of Fiore, swinging Balmung to one side to pour blood on its blade.

Assassin looked at her right arm, which now hung limp and had released the knife, and snapped her tongue.

"Tsk. We ran out of time. We alone can't fight against five. Next time we'll surely kill you!"

With that last threat, the little servant leapt and slipped through the mists, just in time to avoid being pierced by several swords.

Moments later, the fog dispersed, and Archer landed next to his master.

"Archer!"

"Fiore, ¿are you hurt?"

"I'm fine. Thanks-" Just as she had just said that she went into a coughing fit.

Archer stroked her back a bit as he turned to look at Siegfried. "Thank you, Saber, for protecting my master."

"No problem. It is my duty as an ally."

Ruler, Rider, Caules and Sieg arrived shortly after. Seeing what had happened, they came to the conclusion that they had to eliminate Assassin as soon as possible.

The only one who seemed to notice Sieg's clenched fist was Ruler.

* * *

The next morning, Archer, Ruler and Sieg were heading for Trifas.

The plan was simple. The three of them would act as a decoy for Assassin to show themselves, and then they would ambush they among Saber and Rider. Sieg had volunteered for the role, because his vast reserves of prana were the perfect bait for a servant with a master who could not replenish his energies. Ruler offered to accompany him so that he would not be alone, as his presence as a servant was not very overwhelming.

However...

"I still don't know what I'm doing here."

Jeanne pouted at Archer's words. "I've already told you. We're all going to have fun until it's time. I will make you put a smile on those stoic faces."

Archer sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. How had he ended up like this?

At the strategic meeting everything was normal, until Ruler proposed that Archer also accompany them. Something that didn't add up o his mind. Wasn't the decoy supposed to look helpless for Assassin to show up?

To his surprise, Fiore, Rider, Sieg and Saber agreed, and the other two masters gave in to the pressure of the gaze of Ruler and his master.

It was true that, having been a human while hi was alive, his presence as a servant did not stand out much, and with his company reduced the chances that Sieg would have to use those strange seals of command.

But that doesn't detract from his success. Why did everyone insist that he should have fun?

Jeanne's insistence made Archer feel a huge sense of deja vu, and he eventually accepted.

And here he was now, accompanying them dressed again in the elegant black suit. They looked like a single father taking his two children to a religious event.

"...And if the worst comes to pass, you run. Archer and I will protect you." It seemed like Ruler was going over the plan with Sieg as Archer stepped out of his spiral of thought.

"I know. But are you two gonna be okay?" Jeanne and Archer put up interrogative expressions, but the first seemed to understand soon after.

"Could it be that you're worrying about Laeticia?"

"Uh, yes. She's-"

"So am I. But she wanted this."

"Wait, I think I'm missing something. Who's Laeticia?" Archer asked confused.

"Oh. I guess I never told you, Archer. For some reason, the Grail could not summon me in the conventional way, so I had to possess the body of this young girl named Laeticia. Of course, it was with her consent."

Despite that last clarification, Archer's eyes opened. "Does that mean that if something happens to you, it will happen to her, too?"

"No. My spiritual core will take all the damage, so when I disappear Laeticia will be intact."

With that, Archer sighed with relief. Jeanne smiled at the genuine concern the two had for the well-being of Laeticia, a person they did not even know.

"Back to topic. Is there anything else that you're worried about, Sieg?"

"I was wondering about the master of Assassin."

"Rikudo Reika?"

"At first, we thought she was meant as a sacrifice for the original master. But somehow she ended up a being a serial killer like Assassin."

"Maybe she's being coerced by Assassin. In which case..."

"There may still be hope that we can save her."

"Even so..." Archer intervened in the conversation. "Servants always tend to resemble their masters. We can't completely rule out the possibility that she's really a killer."

The mood between the two suddenly sank with the harsh words of the nameless servant.

"And what shall we do then?" Sieg asked with a scowl.

"Well, once we kill Assassin, she will have nothing to do with the war. If she continues on that path, there will be no other choice but to stop her and turn her over to the police."

The homunculus nodded, while Jeanne looked at them worried.

The three finally arrived in the city. Since Jeanne had no plan for the two of them to have fun, she ended up dragging them all over town to relate to as many people as they could.

They visited all the shops, played with the children they met, and even witnessed a wedding. She expected that Sieg didn't know what it was, but when Archer also put a confused face on the scene, it made her feel bad. He really was always alone, not knowing what it is to be loved.

Sieg, though he had already chosen his path, seeing how ended Archer at the end of it made him doubt. So he took this opportunity to understand humans. The Holy Grail War had shown him the most murky side of humanity, so seeing all those people happy and smiling made him think.

He could understand a little bit why Archer wanted to protect those smiles, and why he kept pursuing his dream despite his end.

It began to set, and though some veiled smile peered out at Sieg's lips, Archer's face remained stoic as ever. Although he had smiled a little when they were playing with the children, Ruler knew that those were just empty courtesy smiles.

The one time she had seen him smile when he saved Saber. With that, she came to an admirable but at the same time sad conclusion. Archer only really smiled when he made others happy.

All three were walking under the orange sunset sky.

"Those kids were really sweet at heart. They reminded me of me when I was in childhood." Jeanne commented with nostalgia.

"How was that?"

"Help at home, pray in church, play on the street and get dirty. Then repeat. Only children's stuff you will find anywhere."

"Then is there a chance that those girls will become saints like you? Humans are incredible."

"Please stop calling me a saint!" She replied a little embarrassed.

"Now you're being too humble."

"You have grown a lot." Seeing Sieg's raised eyebrow, she decided to elaborate. "Now you care about your fellows, and you've even decided the path you want to follow. That wouldn't have occurred to you sooner, I think."

"You might be right."

"We're excited to see you grow up, but at the same time, we're worried."

"You're worried?"

"You're too reckless with your life. Did you volunteer to be the decoy because you wanted revenge on Assassin?"

"I want to avenge my brothers and sisters. Is that wrong?"

"No. But to think of others as completely evil and to judge them as such is almost impossible."

"But-" What Sieg was going to say was cut off when Jeanne took his hand.

"I sacrificed everything, including my life, for my goal. In the end, I was burned at the stake. I have no regrets. But I also consider it this way: at some point, I agreed to stop being 'good'. I accepted that for some, I would be seen as evil."

"Wait a minute. If you call yourself evil, that would make everyone else so too."

"I believe in the good in people." Jeanne looked away with a complicated expression.

At that time, Archer spoke for the first time in a long time. "The line between good and evil is blurred. It is never black or white, but it is always grey. The hero for one can be the villain for another. People are not just evil because yes, they always have their reasons and circumstances behind them."

Archer paused briefly and looked directly at Ruler. "That's why I think that, as long as you followed the path you chose to the end giving it all, then you shouldn't have regrets or care what others think. And I can see that you really gave your best."

"Oh... uh... thanks." Jeanne got a little flushed.

"You don't have to thank me, I just gave my opinion."

"Still, that means a lot to me."

Archer stared at her somewhat confused, until Sieg broke the silence.

"And you, Archer? Why did you decide to pursue your dream?" Curiosity could be seen on his face.

Archer looked nostalgically as he delved into his blurred memories. "My memories are mostly blurred, but there are still things that cannot be forgotten. My first memory is of a huge fire. I was a kid then, and I was walking through rubble and corpses. That really was hell. I lost my parents and my home, and you could say that the person I was before the fire also died along with those memories. In the end, when I was about to give up and die, a person saved me. That person had a beautiful smile on his face. It almost seemed like he was the one who was saved. At that moment, I thought I wanted to be able to smile like that, too. That simple thought eventually became an ideal. I wanted to become a hero who could save them all, so no one had to suffer that hell. I thought if I did, maybe I could smile like that person."

When Archer finished his speech, he looked at Sieg and Jeanne's expressions. The first was a mixture of sorrow and understanding, while the second was full of pity.

She already knew that his story was anything but beautiful, but to hear that, although it explained his huge distortion, was heartbreaking.

"But well, the past is past, so there's nothing to do about it."

With that said, the three of them came to a coffee shop and ordered some teas. The silence as they sipped from their cups was quite uncomfortable.

"I would like to ask about Amakusa Shirou." Finally Sieg was the one who broke the silence with another question. "Didn't he take the Grail because he was sure he could save humanity? But, if he really can, shouldn't you help him? That worries me."

Ruler was the one who answered him. "I'm not sure either. He might be correct."

Both then looked at Archer.

"He is correct."

That surprised Jeanne a lot. He was the one who had rejected Shirou when he offered to cooperate.

"But just because he's correct that doesn't mean he's right. The salvation of humanity is a dream that everyone would want to pursue, an unattainable utopia. Even if he can accomplish the miracle with the Holy Grail, depending on his own definition of 'saving humanity', he may even end up causing harm to humanity.

"Then, what is your definition of saving everyone?"

"My dream is to be able to make everyone happy. A world where no one has to cry. As you can see, it's a dream full of hypocrisy and almost impossible, but for me, it's a beautiful dream worth fighting for."

"I see..." Sieg nodded in compression. With this talk, he could begin to understand Archer more, and he couldn't help but admire him.

"So, that's why you decided to protect someone as useless as me."

"Huh?"

"There was no profit in saving me for the two of you. Both Red and Black could have turned against you, but you still stood up for me. You gave me freedom. That's just enough to keep going. Words aren't enough to thank you. I want to use my body to thank you both!"

"Hey, I told you that you didn't have to thank me."

Aside from Archer's answer, Jeanne got a little flushed about Sieg's last words.

"Sieg, please choose your words better. Someone may misunderstand."

Both boys looked confused as the customers around them looked at them strangely.

But the conversation was abruptly interrupted when a thick fog spread across the street. The people around started to collapse weakened and coughing.

"They are here."

Both servants replaced their formal suits with their combat armor, and Jeanne materialized her flag.

"Put yourselves under cover! Immediately!" With her authority as Ruler, everyone obeyed her without a fuss and rushed into their homes.

"What's going on?" Sieg asked as he covered his mouth with a tissue.

"This must be Assassin's noble phantasm. Stay close to us, Sieg!"

With that said, the three went into the fog in search of the servant. But, because of the effect of it, they ended up separating and ending up each in a different place in the city.

* * *

Jeanne felt there was a presence stalking her, so she stopped to face it. However, Assassin's presence concealment made it impossible to detect where they were.

"_Hell is starting."_

Among the fog and shadows of the city, Jack the Ripper was stalking their prey.

"_We are fire. We are rain. We are power. Let there be a massacre."_

All three conditions had been met. It was night, there was fog and their target was female. They were going to finish off that annoying holy woman, then deal with the servant who was with her and finally feast on the homunculus they wanted to protect so much.

"_Maria the Ripper!"_

With the real name of the noble phantasm pronounced and the target chosen, the curse was activated.

It was the sublimation of all the murders committed in London. The four knives strategically placed on her hips, which could hardly be considered D rank noble phantasms, were empowered with the hatred of all children abandoned by prostitutes from the London ghettos.

Assassin jumped from the rooftop where she stood, hurling herself at Ruler with enormous speed.

Jeanne felt the enormous murderous intent and quickly dodged to one side. But she reacted late, and could not avoid a cut on her side.

The curse flooded her body, wreaking havoc on her internal organs. She spat out quite a lot of blood, but that was it.

"How?" Assassin watched her inn utter surprise. Her entrails were supposed to be torn out, and all her limbs mutilated, and yet the holy maiden stood with only a few wounds that were not even mortal.

Taking advantage of that, Ruler crossed the distance between the two in an instant. She swung her flag with all her might, hitting hard Assassin's chest and sending her into the wall of a house.

Assassin got up with difficulty. "Why you don't die?"

"Resistiance to curses is one of my skills. Assassin of Black, you've gone too far."

"Did we? We might've. We're not sure, but this is not over. Mom and us will get the Grial! Catch it!"

Assassin grabbed from the thick fog what Ruler recognized as the body of an unconscious man and threw him at her. She was forced to pick him up so he wouldn't hurt himself by falling violently to the ground, and that gave Assassin the opening she needed.

She prepared to throw herself at her with her enormous agility, but she stopped when she felt a huge pain in her back.

As she spat blood, she turned her head to see a twisted sword piercing her right lung, barely failing the spiritual core.

Archer had found her, and Ruler was back on guard. She had to get out of there immediately and go back to her mother.

Assassin jumped into an alley, but was intercepted by a red blur. Her head was caught between Archer's legs, and they both fell to the floor with a bang. She faced the ground, with Archer's knee pressed on her back.

"It's over."

The girl's eyes widened in horror and fear as she saw Archer's cold gaze, and the silver sword in his hand that emitted a huge evil aura. It was like watching death descend upon her.

But, to everyone's surprise, Assassin vanished. Redeemer pierced the pavement without drawing a drop of blood.

"A command seal?" It was the only conclusion to which both present servants came.

Just a few minutes later, the city was engulfed in an even thicker fog, and they were all transported to Assassin's hell.

* * *

Sieg walked through hell.

With every step he took, he could see a horrific scene. Children being abused, and killed as if they were nothing but cattle.

He had been chasing after Assassin's master, who had tried to kill him without a word, and soon after found himself in this kind of reality marble.

That must have been what Assassin experienced in life. Archer's reality marble was sad and heartbreaking, but this was hell itself. The worst side of the world.

So much cruelty and evil, coming from humans that he was trying to understand. The humans that Ruler and Archer had dedicated their entire lives to protecting and making happy.

His heart staggered. Was it really worth following the path he had chosen?

Seeing those horrors made him realize that saving everyone was impossible. That for the majority to be happy, a minority had to be sacrificed. And, in the case of Archer and Jeanne, that minority was themselves.

Finally, Sieg came out of an alley, and found Ruler, facing Archer of Red, who behind her were many of the children he had seen in that hell.

Both servants were in conflict. Atalanta, who had murdered Assassin's master, received most of the curse of Jack the Ripper. Seeing the horrors those kids went through, it almost broke her.

Her dream was a world where all the children were loved, so this hell hit her hard. She desperately wanted to save them from that cruel fate.

Jeanne, on the other hand, had decided to put aside her feelings. The children were not evil, but victims, but there was nothing she could do to save them.

Then she decided to purify them and put them out of their misery. It was the least she could do for those poor lost souls.

"Ruler!"

"Please do not interfere." Ruler's impassive gaze was not detached from the chaste hunter, who was mired in despair and helplessness.

"You must understand it. By leaving them alive, you are only allowing them to increase their numbers."

"Silence!"

"Putting their souls to rest is their salvation."

"What kind of salvation is that!?"

Atalanta could not stand it any longer and let go of the rope of her bow. However, in her ruined state of mind, the arrow failed and barely grazed some of Ruler's hairs.

"Ruler!" Sieg worried and tried to get closer, but his body was too weakened by the smog.

"Saint! Tell me why you're waving your banner in battle instead of a sword! Because you didn't want to kill people!? You didn't want to get blood on your hands!"

"Is that what you really think, Archer of Red? Do you think my hands are not stained with blood because I did not wield a sword? What a joke. I participated in those battles. That was my decision. From that moment, my hands were stained with blood. Do not take me lightly. That is why I will not hesitate to destroy them."

"How dare you call yourself Saint!?"

"You're right. I've never called myself Saint. This is the world of those children's memories. Nothing but an illusion made from their residual thoughts. Archer, perhaps your intention is to make them suffer eternally in this hell. If not, then stand aside!"

"If I abandon these children, then who will love them? Will your God? Ruler, you said that you would put their souls to rest! That is nothing more than killing! I never..."

Atalanta was reaching the point of madness, when one of the children passed by and walked towards Ruler. She stopped a few meters from Jeanne.

"You... you also saw hell..."

Her words confused everyone. Ruler then realized that the girl was not looking at her, but behind her.

They all turned to look where the child looked, and saw the last person who had entered hell.

Archer was standing there, looking at the children with a solemn expression.

"That's true. I saw hell, and hell was a part of me all my life."

That said, he approached the girl, to stay in front of her. Atalanta's face seemed to renew at the time.

"King of Fakers! You, who saved them all, must be able to save them as well!"

But, to her horror, Archer shook his head. "There's nothing I can do to avoid the miserable fate of these souls. Ruler is correct-"

"Don't give me that shit you too! Where did all that talk of saving them all go!? Were they just empty words!?"

"I can't let them go on living in this hell, so I'm going to save them."

"What nonsense are you saying? You're just going to kill them!"

"You seem to have misunderstood it, Archer of Red. Saving a person doesn't just mean prevent them from dying. A life full of misery and sadness is meaningless. A short life but full of happiness is better, don't you think? That's why..."

Archer changed his gaze to the girl in front of him.

"Are you going to kill me, sir?"

"Yes. You're going to die."

Hearing Archer's harsh words, Atalanta bit her lips. Sieg opened his eyes in despair, and Jeanne felt a hole in her heart. He was gonna take all the blame and consequences all by himself again, and he was gonna get his hands dirty instead of hers.

But, before the any of them could do anything, Archer continued his speech.

"But, you're going to die with a smile on your face." That made everyone even more confused.

"In your short life, you only saw the worst the world has to offer. So, I'm going to show you the other side. I will show you the light I found at the end of my journey. The miracle that gave me the hope to continue pursuing my dream."

With that said, he uttered the first verse of his aria. The poem that described him as a person, and the answer he came to after living his whole life as a sword.

"_I am the bone of my sword."_

A golden sword appeared in his hands. His unique and true noble phantasm. The representation of the miracle of 'saving everyone', and the crystallization of all his ideals that carries all the dreams and hopes of all the people he saved during his life.

The nameless sword of promised salvation.

The blade stabbed into the ground, and its light spread throughout the place. The ominous and toxic fog disappeared, the dreary landscape of London was replaced by a green meadow and a beautiful clear blue sky.

They were in Avalon, the unreacheble utopia that this 'sword' reached.

Everyone looked at the beautiful landscape in awe, even Jeanne having seen it before could not help but be moved.

Archer raised the blade above his head, and specks of golden light began to accumulate on his blade.

The children behind Atalanta finally understood his intentions, and began to approach Archer. She did not stop him. She fell to her knees with tears in her eyes, realizing that this was the only solution.

"Rest in peace, Jack the Ripper. You might find happiness wherever you go."

With those last words, Archer swung the sword, and its light was shot at the children. However, the warm and comforting light enveloped the children, welcoming them without harming them.

What the light 'killed' was the curse that bound the children to their miserable fate as the legend of Jack de Ripper.

Little by little, the children were disappearing. They were no longer 'Jack de Ripper', so their existence on this plane could no longer be sustained. Their souls would return to the Root, and go through the cycle of reincarnation.

But, all the children who disappeared, did so with smiles. The warm light of the miracle gave them hope to move on. It showed them that, despite how dark and rotten the world can be, there is still light and hope out there.

Finally, only the original spirit remained, the one they had faced in the city. Her eyes met Archer's, and she showed a smile. It was not a twisted smile full of evil, but a pure and warm smile.

"Thank you, sir... and sorry."

With that last farewell, the girl vanished, and the four were again at Trifas.

Archer, with his stoic expression, looked at Atalanta.

She was now a bundle of doubts. Atalante wanted to hate that man, and yet she couldn't.

Archer had certainly killed them, but she also saw the radiant smiles on their faces. What else could be called that than being saved?

She could also feel the warmth of the light of that sword, which even purged the curse that had clung to her.

Her thoughts were interrupted when he had to jump onto the roof of a building. Saber crashed his sword where she had been a few moments ago. Rider was also flying over the area.

With one last indecipherable glance, Archer of Red disappeared between the rooftops. Saber and Rider ran after her, but she ended getting away.

Archer turned to face Sieg, who was still overwhelmed by recent events. "I'd like to tell you not to hate humans, Sieg, but, after what you saw, the choice is yours to make."

The boy nodded half-assed, and Jeanne approached Archer with a serious yet troubled face.

"Archer, why did you decide to take all the blame and consequences?"

"I don't doubt that you could have taken it and overcome it, Ruler. But it's better if someone who's already used to it does it, don't you think?"

Ruler, although she didn't buy his reasoning, let it be. She already knew the answer anyway. He simply prioritized her happiness over his own. As he did with everyone else, throughout all his life.

That... that really felt bad for her for some reason.

They returned to Castle Yggmillenia in an uncomfortable silence. Sieg was still immersed in his thoughts, while Jeanne had mixed feelings.

* * *

**And that's all for now. What do you think? Shakespeare, as a writer, nailed the title of this story, and being the only servant who comes from England along with Mordred, he did know the legend of King of Fakers, at least on its surface.**

**Jeanne inadvertently participated in a double date, with two very dense boys, although in the end it ended up being more of a talk about ideals and beliefs to illustrate Sieg.**

**FBI loli was not only purified, but her curse was eradicated and she could die with a smile. Maybe in her reincarnation, she can get the love of a mother she was so looking for. Mind you, Jack the Ripper still exists, what was purified was a servant, not the original heroic spirit.**

**As for King of Fakers' line_ "it's better if someone who's already used to it does it, don't you think?"_ Not only does he allude to the fact that he has killed a lot more people with his own hands than Jeanne. Those who have read my first story can see the parallels between this scene and Nero's final farewell. In both situations, King of Fakers gets them to die happy and smiling, but that doesn't take away the fact that they died in front of him without being able to do anything.**

**And well, I guess no one's missed the good meme of _"just because you're correct doesn't mean you're right"_. This could not be called a true conflict of ideals without that line. It would be like a Fifth Holy Grail **War **without the "Yorokobe shounen".**

**And while we're talking about references, the movement that King of Fakers uses to catch Assassin is the same that EMIYA uses to catch cursed arm Hassan in the Heaven's Feel Lost Butterfly film.**

**Without further ado, as always, any constructive review, follow and fav is welcome, and motivates me to continue writing. I still haven't thought if my next update will be of this story or my other crossover.**

**With this I say goodbye for now. Until we meet again!**


	6. Chapter 5

**See you again, people! Here is the next chapter of this story. You could say that this chapter is calm before the storm, so it is much more relaxed than the previous ones. Therefore, I decided to include quite a humour like my other current story. Still, there will still be seriousness.**

**As for the fate of loli FBI, well, I don't think it was that crazy. I didn't say that 'Jack of Ripper' as such was purified. The original legend is based on a few facts and not on a particular entity since the mysterious killer was never discovered, so their nature is quite similar to Sasaki Kojirou's, that is, a nameless entity summoned to assume the mantle of the legend in question. The point is that the sword of promised salvation purified that amalgam of evil spirits, but not 'Jack of Ripper'.**

**Anyway, that's left to everyone's interpretation. I'm not the original author, so I can only speculate.**

**Without further ado, let the chapter begin.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own any right over Type-Moon or the Fate franchise.**

* * *

The next morning passed quietly. With the Assassin's affair already dealt with, we no longer had a metaphorical knife pointed at our backs. Still, the mood felt quite heavy.

The times I met Sieg, he had a frown constantly, although Rider was still trying to cheer up the mood. Ruler's expression was not very different from Sieg's, only when we met, she looked away.

As for me, well, I won't deny I felt pretty bad. I could only give rest to those poor souls, so even though they found happiness in their last moments, that doesn't take away the fact that they died without me being able to do anything.

My noble phantasm only 'severed' the curse that bound them to the miserable fate of being 'Jack of Ripper', but the original heroic spirit is still on the throne of heroes. So, you could say that I could barely 'save' a part of all the abused nameless children that make up the legend itself.

However, what has been done is done. There is no point in trying to change something that has already happened. Just as I learned to live with the memory of that hell.

I didn't cry when Nero died in front of me because of my inability to handle the situation better, and I won't cry over this either.

All my tears ran out the day that the person who saved me, and helped me to form as the individual that I am, died that full moon night.

At night, we had a strategic meeting. The final plan was to raid the flying fortress on several planes flown by golems. The problem was we didn't have a way through their magic defenses.

Caladbolg II and Retriever could go through them as if they were nothing, but they wouldn't cancel them out. Nor could we tear down the fortress. I would have to use quite a few broken phantasms, and I needed to be in full swing if we were to face the Red servants.

Then it occurred to Rider to mention that he had a noble phantasm which could accomplish such a task, but had forgotten its name.

It was a grimoire with the ability to cancel any magecraft. Basically, its function was similar to Rule Breaker's, but without the need to stab it at the target. Its mere presence nearby would do the trick. That saved me the need to project and shoot a lot of Rule Breakers.

The problem that arose was that for Astolfo to remember the name of the noble phantasm, it had to be a new moon night, and the next night like that would be in three days. Three days in which the flying fortress would already be outside Romania, and we would probably be late to stop Amakusa Shirou.

The meeting ended and I accompanied Fiore to her room. Caules also came, so it seemed that he was finally going to talk to her about the issue of inheritance.

They both sat on either side of the table, while I stood by my master's side, and Caules started straight to the point.

"I think this is the tipping point. Of you becoming a magus king or remaining human. The road forks here."

Fiore opened her eyes. "You're telling me to stop practicing magecraft!?"

"That's your choice."

"Isn't that obvious!? I-"

"You can't stomach people dying."

"But-"

"Do you remember that dog?"

"How could I forget it? That's something that shouldn't be forgotten."

"Why?"

"Because... because if I forget, where would that go?"

"You see, that's what I mean."

Fiore finally understood the point of Caules. "You're right. I may have doubted too much. I'm just a useless girl, huh?"

"That's not true." At that point in the conversation I decided to intervene. "Just because you're not heartless doesn't mean you're useless. In fact, I think it's better that you're like that."

She looked at me surprised. "Archer? You think I shouldn't be a magus too?"

"You're wrong, master. I just don't think you should let go of your humanity."

"Isn't that the same as not being a magus?"

"No. I've known magus who weren't monsters who just wanted to get to the root, even though these can be counted on the fingers of one hand. The point is, if you decide to become a magus, you can follow that stupid investigation, or you can fight. Fight to try to change that twisted system, and try to make the 'moonlit world' a not-so-putrid place."

"But that is impossible!"

"You won't know it if you don't try it. If I had stopped to think about probabilities, I wouldn't have fought head-on the Primate Murder."

Fiore was not so surprised. Surely she had already seen it in the cycle of dreams. Caules was the one who was surprised.

"WHAT!? You faced the beast of calamity?!"

"Yes. But that is not the main issue. When the Holy Grail War comes to an end, I will no longer be here, so the final decision is yours, Fiore."

Caules came out of shock at the time. "Fiore, I want you to know that I will support you in making the decision you make."

With that last said, we both left the room and left her alone to think and reflect.

Although, now that I was in the hallway, I stopped to think. What was I going to do until dawn again?

As I walked in automatic mode through the corridors, totally immersed in my thoughts, I heard a scream very close to where I was.

"KYAAAAAA!"

Well, who says close, says on the door next door. My eardrums even beeped for a few seconds.

My distracted mind assumed the worst, and without thinking very well of whose room or voice it was, I kicked the door almost out of the hinges and rushed in.

"What happened!? What was that... scream?" All my impetus was gone when I started to analyze the scene I found.

On one side was Sieg, looking at the other two members of the room in a state of confusion. Jeanne was close to him, with her face as red as my cloak and covering her eyes with her hands. You could even see some steam coming out of her head.

And finally, there was Rider, with a towel on his shoulders... and totally naked. His 'excalibur' was hanging in sight.

It didn't take me long to connect the dots, and I couldn't help but put my hand on my face. Worst of all, he was having trouble holding his own laughing at poor Jeanne's reaction.

"Rider, please cover your er... 'sword'."

After Rider covered himself with the towel, I accompanied a Ruler still dazed by what she had just seen to her room.

Actually, this seemed like a typical eroge situation... wait, since when do I know what a eroge is? And why did I feel a chill when I thought about it?

* * *

The next day I found myself walking through the streets next to Astolfo and Sieg. We had reached a full consensus that we would rest until the day of the raid on The Hanging Gardens of Babylon, and Astolfo ended up dragging us to Trifas.

Something about us not having much fun on the date with Ruler. Though, was that a date? Well, what we did fit the definition... I can't remember who gave that definition to me, but to my mind it was when a boy and a girl went out together to have fun.

Does that mean I had my first date with Ruler?

Nah, it can't be. Besides, Sieg was there too, so I doubt that really counts as a date, right?

The thing is, we ended up going into a restaurant that caught Astolfo's attention, and, coincidentally, there was Saber of Red. The dishes were starting to pile up in front of her.

Sieg said he wanted to talk to her, so we sat at the same table with her. Even though Astolfo was a little reluctant as she had almost killed them, I agreed too. She and I had a business to solve.

"Well? What do you want with me?"

"I have a blunt question for you. Do you think people are right?"

"Jack the Ripper?"

"Yes. I know not all people are like that, but still..." Sieg put a complicated expression. He was probably remembering what he saw in that hell.

"So there you have it. Humans are humans. Disorderly people who will do good or evil as circumstances demand. In the end, they're just animals that turned out to be a little smarter. They are driven by greed, they always forget favors but never offenses. It is not worth lifting a finger to protect them."

Mordred's blunt response came in an indifferent tone. I didn't agree with that, but I could also see where her opinion was coming from. From the story on her sword, her 'mother' was not the nicest person to put it lightly.

Astolfo was not as patient as I was and responded. "You're wrong! That's what makes them interesting! That's why-"

"However." Saber ignored him completely and spoke to Sieg. "What about you? What do you think of humans?"

"I like them, I think. Or so I thought until I saw Assassin's past."

"What about now?"

"I don't know. I wanted to protect them. That was the path I had chosen. But now I'm not so sure if I'll be able to follow that path without regrets."

The eyes of both servants turned to me for a few moments, but I kept quiet. After showing him my reality marble and true noble phantasm, there was nothing more I could do to help him choose.

"How am I supposed to respond to that? There is no right or wrong choice here. I do what I want, and how I want. That responsibility is mine alone."

"But-"

Sieg's objection was cut off when Mordred struck hard at the cup she had been drinking from.

"One day, I will become King. How can a king who cries and laughs with his people help them when they need it the most? There's no way!"

"My King would do it!"

Astolfo's response seemed to hit her nerve, and she rose to leave.

"Are you leaving?" I spoke for the first time since he had arrived at the restaurant.

"You haven't finished bothering me yet?" She replied annoyed, though her gaze said otherwise.

"I thought you and I had some unfinished business."

"Hmm. That's where you and I can be on the same page." That said, she sat at the table again, and ordered another round of dishes.

Meanwhile, I turned to look at the two people I had come with.

"I won't tell you to leave, but I warn you that we are going to talk about matters everything but nice."

Astolfo looked with concern at Sieg, before returning to his usual enthusiastic attitude and rising from the chair.

"Come on, master, we haven't done any of the fun things I have prepared yet."

They both said goodbye to me and left the restaurant to continue their tour of the city. Once Saber and I were alone, she started devouring the food, so I was the one who started the conversation.

"I guess I'll start by telling you that beating me isn't going to make you any closer to your 'father'."

"Is that so? As I understand it, you were the one who drew the sword in the stone before 'father'."

"To this day I don't even know why it chose me. All I know is that I was desperate and I give it chance without much thought. Besides, even if the name of my legend suggests it, I was never a King as such nor did I lead anyone else."

Well, if I remember correctly, I died before they tried to make me king or something like that.

She snarled as she digested the information, apart from the food. Her stomach looked like a bottomless pit.

"Was that all you wanted to talk about?"

"No. How to put this... I would like you to give me your opinion on... your 'father'."

Upon hearing my request, her fork, which had just pricked a piece of sirloin and was heading for her open mouth, stopped in its tracks. Her indifferent expression with slight discomfort shifted to a frown and a penetrating look that would make anyone shit their pants.

I knew dealing with this issue was like stepping on a landmine, but there was something I wanted to check out since our first meeting. This is precisely why I suggested to Astolfo and Sieg to leave us alone.

Seeing that I did not flinch at her angry gaze, she snorted and calmed down a bit. Not much, but the murder intent was considerably reduced.

"And why would you want to know that?" Almost ruling out any attempt to talk about it, she went back to her food...

"Well, this is the second Holy Grail War I've been involved in, at least as I remember."

...just to stop by hearing my next sentence. The way her eyes opened, she must have sensed where I was going with this, but I told her anyway.

"The servant Saber of that War was your 'father'."

Just when I finished speaking, she practically jumped out of her chair. She grabbed me by the lapels of the tuxedo and pulled me towards her until our faces came very close.

"Did you know 'father'!? Did you fight with him!?" Her expression was a strange mixture of anger and expectation.

Keeping my poker face I answered her. "Yes. As for fighting 'him', I don't remember much of what happened during the war, so I wouldn't know what to tell you." I tried to disguise how strange it was for me to call Arturia 'he'.

In fact, the few things I remember from that war are fighting to the death with my natural enemy, vaguely the boy so much like me that he promised he would surpass me, and the promise I made to that girl who was my master.

Every name or face, even how the war ended, was lost. The servants were the ones I remembered the most, and that was just because their noble phantasms were analyzed and replicated in the Unlimited Blade Works.

Were it not for the fact that Mordred's face was exactly like Arturia's, and for the image of her sacred sword that was recorded in my inner world, I would not even have remembered her.

"I-is there a problem, sir, ma'am?" One of the waitresses asked us completely nervous.

In that moment, we realized we were making a scene, and all the customers were looking at us.

For a moment it seemed that Mordred was going to burst when they referred to her as a woman, but she managed to repress herself.

"No. There is no problem. Now get your ass out of here right now and leave us alone!"

The waitress let out a sort of moan and ran away, sweating and trembling. Well, at least she didn't do anything crazy like materialize Clarent. She let me go and sat back down snorting.

I shook the tuxedo a little so it didn't look like a bunch of wrinkles and I talked to her again.

"So, you're more open to talking about it now?"

"Fine." It took her a few deep breaths to finish calming down and psyching up. "'Father' was what could be described as the 'perfect King'. He always did what was best for the country and its people, without letting any human emotion affect their judgment."

Though it was difficult for her to speak of Arturia, I could see in her voice a glimmer of admiration.

"And yet, 'father' did not understand the feelings of humans. When I appeared before him and announced myself as his son, he rejected me as his heir simply because he hated my mother."

Now she was beginning to show a lot of hate in her words. You didn't have to be a psychologist to see that it really hurt her.

"I see..." I was beginning to see a little bit of the full picture of the whole thing. That pretty much explained her obsession with surpassing her 'father' and showing that she was worthy of being her heir.

"I guess now it's my turn to tell you the impression I had of your 'father'."

Her eyes shone a little expectantly as she ate the remaining food in an attempt to relax.

"Heh, he probably beat the crap out of you."

Well, I wasn't going to deny that. She was really a dragon with human form. Beating her would have been really hard, and that's in case she didn't use her noble phantasm and we were just talking about a sword fight. And yet, she would surely had the upperhand.

But it was time to drop the bomb. I was squeezing every drop of my fuzzy memories of her and what I could get out of her swords' story for this.

Rummaging through the swords of my reality marble, I even found Caliburn, the sword in the stone that Arturia drew and which later broke and was replaced by Excalibur and Avalon.. Don't ask me how I got the plans for that sword. If I had to guess, I guess when that boy inherited my skills and my swords, I got his too.

"What I found was a girl full of doubts and regrets."

Her mouth and eyes opened wide. "What!? Don't you dare insult 'father', Faker! It's impossible for him to have that kind of emotion!"

"You're wrong. She was as human as you and I. Otherwise, why do you think she was summoned into a Holy Grail war in the first place?"

She opened her mouth to say something, but after a few moments she closed it without saying anything. The fact is, a heroic spirit will only respond to the summons if he desires the Grail, or a special case like mine.

"She wanted to get the Grail to change the past, and have someone else draw the sword in the stone."

"No way..."

"I even remember that she came to me for advice. So, I can safely say, that the whole 'perfect King' thing was just a mask she adopted for the sake of her kingdom."

There was no response from her anymore. I guess hearing that was really shocking. I will not deny that what I said was partly my own speculation, but I am inclined to think that I came quite close to the goal.

"So... then, why did he reject me?" Now there was only anguish in her voice.

"I don't have an answer for that. Maybe she really did it out of hatred for your mother, or maybe she saw that you were missing something to be king."

"Are you telling me that I, the one who surpassed 'father', am not worthy?" Her tone came out deathly cold, though there was some desperation behind it.

"As I told you, I was never a king as such, so I'm not one to judge you in that regard. That's something you have to think about. What kind of King would you be? A human king, an inhuman one, or a tyrant one?"

"I see..."

With her food already finished, she got up to leave. She walked out, her hands in her pockets and her bangs covering her eyes.

But, she suddenly stopped halfway, and I could barely hear a thread of voice.

"Thanks..."

"Huh?"

"Don't make me repeat myself!"

With that, leaving me confused and not knowing what she had said, she finally left the restaurant.

I let go a heavy sigh. This was the most I could do to help her, the rest was up to her.

I got up to go too. It was quite late, so I guess Astolfo's plans to try and make me have fun were already completely frustrated.

I felt quite conflicted with that. I didn't feel like someone like me deserved such things, but I had promised that I would love myself more, so I hadn't rejected Rider.

"Sir, the bill."

I stopped like a deer in front of the headlights. I had forgotten that none of us had paid for the food or the teas we ordered. And now, the whole bill just fell into my hands.

Actually, it was weird enough that my E rank luck hadn't gotten me into a situation like this since I was summoned.

With another sigh, I took out the wallet I was carrying with some money, and I started doing accounts.

Well... at least the numbers on the left matched. The problem was that the number of zeros on the bill and my budget didn't match... and it was my budget that had one zero less...

How many dishes was Mordred eating!? Bottomless pit fell short! Her stomach was a black hole!

Wait! Now that I remember, we brought a credit card in case something like this happened.

I checked my wallet and all my pockets, and after I didn't find anything, I finally remembered that it was Rider who was carrying the card.

Damn E rank luck!

"Is there a problem sir?" The waiter, who had come to replace his companion whom Mordred had frightened away, must have noticed that my face paled enougth to match my hair.

I turned to look at him, with a _not_ forced smile at all, and my left eyebrow trembling. "May I make a call?"

* * *

Fiore had stayed in her room finalizing the final preparations for the assault. Her mind was still hesitant about what decision she was going to make.

What Archer had said was true. It wouldn't be an easy path at all, but it was a goal worth fighting for. However, she would have to give up her desire to be able to walk with her legs again.

A decision she needed time to weigh up, and time was a very limited resource for them in the situation they were in.

Her train of thoughts was interrupted when her mobile phone started to pop out. She caught it quite nervous. The last time she had been called was to warn her that Assassin had broken into the fortress and was after her.

At least, with that previous experience, she already knew which button she had to press to respond to the call.

"Who is it?"

_"Master, it's me."_

From the way the person on the other side had referred to her and his voice, it hardly took her a few moments to realize it was Archer. Still, why was her servant calling her with an unknown number?

"Archer? Why are you calling me instead of talking through our link?"

_"I need to keep up appearances."_

"I see... Did something happen while you were in town?"

After a few seconds of silence, Archer replied. _"Master... I need money."_

Fiore blinked a couple of times while processing what she just heard. "What do you mean you need money?"

The nameless servant briefly explained the situation to her, and she could not help but stroke her forehead with her hand.

"Weren't you supposed to have taken a credit card?"

_"The card's in Rider's possession, and he's probably already on his way back."_

She sighed "Now I understand why your luck parameter is so low. Can't you just hypnotize them?"

_"That kind of magecraft is out of my league."_

"What? But it's one the most basic."

_"When I said I'm a disaster of a magus, I wasn't kidding. My specialized origin and element prevent me from being able to master no other spell than reinforcement and projection."_

Right. She forgot that after discovering that her servant possessed the greatest magecraft, able to rewrite reality to resemble his inner world.

"And you can't project bills just like you do with swords?"

_"Master, that would be a fraud. Even if it's just some bills, I doubt they'll last longer than a few days. I don't want to ruin a business in just a few weeks that I've been here."_

Fiore sighed again. She didn't want that, nor would Archer do anything so selfish.

"Okay. I'll send you someone with money."

_"Thank you, master."_

Well, Caules wasn't doing anything right now, so Fiore doubted a walk would hurt him.

* * *

Rider and Astolfo were already climbing the slope leading to the castle Yggmillenia. It was already sunset, so there was less and less natural light, and the sky was orange, like in a certain reality marble.

Halfway up, Ruler was waiting for them, waving and smiling.

Sieg anticipated the two servants, still immersed in his internal debate, as the two began to talk about what they had done in the city.

"So you ran into Saber of Red, and Archer stayed with her arranging some... _businees_ with her."

"Yep. They were both very serious when we left."

That was a bit troubling for Ruler, but she doubted that they would make a fuss in public. Instead, she averted her gaze to Sieg's back.

"I hope he can get rid of his doubts."

The path he had chosen was not going to be pretty, but as Archer said, if he could follow it to the end and have no regrets, then he could be happy. She had mixed feelings about it, but had come to accept it.

"About his path?"

"Yes. That's important."

"How important is it to you?"

That question caught her a little by surprise. "I-is nothing significant."

Astolfo squinted with some suspicion. "Are you hiding something?"

"Nothing at all!"

"Can you swear to God?"

"Huh? I-"

But before she could try to defend herself, Astolfo let her be and directed his gaze to the sunset.

"But I agree. He should have no doubts and love people. He still has a future."

Jeanne looked at him a little surprised, it was rare to see him serious. At that moment, a theory was formed in her mind.

"U-um, you fancy Sieg, Astolfo?" She asked him quietly in the ear.

"What about you?" The servant answered her back by returning the question.

"T-that's not it! I love everyone equally."

Instead of that discouraging him, Rider put on a mischievous smile. "Then, do you fancy Archer?"

Hearing it, Jeanne skipped a breath. It was true that she had mixed feelings with the nameless hero. She admired his honest determination to pursue his dream even though it was almost impossible, and at the same time made her feel bad about seeing him prioritize others' happiness over his.

To her relief, before she had to answer that question, they heard Sieg's voice.

"Oh, Caules, are you going to town at this hour?"

Indeed, the former master of Berserker of Black stood beside Sieg. His gaze focused on the servant with pink hair.

"Yes. Looks like a certain person forgot to leave Archer the credit card so he could pay for the food, and now he's being held at the restaurant."

Rider shuddered at the words of the magus and the looks of Sieg and Ruler, then looked away and began to whistle as if trying to look innocent.

Caules breathed a sigh at that. "Anyway. I'll go there."

The culprit of the situation opened his eyes to hear that, as if he had been struck by some realization.

"Wait!"

The boy stopped and looked at him with a raised eyebrow. Astolfó looked at Jeanne, putting back his mischievous smile.

"Ruler here says she's volunteering to take the money to Archer."

"Huh!? That's not-!"

Before she could deny it, Astolfo winked at her and whispered to her "this is your chance".

"Well, if you want to, I won't stop you."

She couldn't say no, and ended up going to the restaurant.

Even if she tried, she couldn't deny that she was amused to see Archer mumbling things about his E rank luck. Although when he approached her with comic tears in his eyes and took her by the hand saying "Ruler you're my salvation" she felt her cheeks turn as red as when she saw Astolfo's 'excalibur'.

After paying that exorbitant bill, the two returned to the castle Yggmillenia.

It was already dark, and the two walked in silence under the starry sky. The situation was a bit uncomfortable. Archer wasn't much of a talker, and Jeanne didn't know what to talk about.

Besides, Astolfo's question was still floating in her mind, and she wasn't sure she knew the answer. She could not put into words the feelings she had towards the nameless hero, nor could she distinguish whether those feelings were really hers or Laeticia's.

Finally, she mustered the courage to ask the question that had been asked since the day of the Assassin fiasco.

"Archer, I'd like to ask you something."

"And what would that be?"

"Have you ever... felt what it's like to be loved." There it is. She could finally ask him. Although she could get a sense of the answer, she still had some hope. He said he was saved by a person, so maybe that person gave him some love.

"Well…" He glanced at the night sky with some nostalgia, and then turned to look at her directly. "The person who saved me from that hell died not long after. From there, I traveled around the world helping and saving as many people as I could, so I guess the answer to your question would be no."

Jeanne bit her lips a little bit when she heard that. However, his next line was what really shocked her.

"Besides, who would love someone like me?"

She felt her heart ache when she heard that. It was really sad to hear that from him in such a flat, emotionless tone, as if he were simply objectively describing himself.

Ruler tightened her hands. "If you keep thinking like that, you might end up regretting it someday."

She said it without thinking it through. If her intuition was correct, that's the line no one told him during his life, and that's why it ended up that way.

"I know, but changing myself at this point is really hard. Helping people and making them happy is the only thing that's ever made me happy."

She squeezed her fist even tighter. He... he was right. Maybe, if someone had made him see that in his lifetime, he might not have had such a sad and lonely ending. He could have learned to love himself. But now...

It was clear that he alone could not change. His enormous psychological distortion meant he had no intention of saving himself.

He needed someone to be there for him. Someone who would help him love himself, and who would love him...

They both continued in silence on their way back. That night, Jeanne would have to deal with her increasingly confused and complicated to understand feelings.

* * *

Finally, the expected day came. The day that all this history that began with the Third War of the Holy Grail would end. One dream would prevail, and the other would be crushed.

Amakusa Shirou was well aware of that. Fate had brought him and King of Fakers together, so they were destined to fight. Even if his enemy had to overcome a hero as renowned as Achilles, he did not doubt that they would end up fighting for their ideals.

With the preparations ready, he prepared to enter the Holy Grail and set in motion the miracle that would fulfill the dream he found at the end of that twisted war.

Now, all that remained was to wait. Could the man who did the impossible stop his miracle?

After so many hours of thought and reflection, Sieg found his resolve. Though seeing Assassin's past staggered his determination to move on, he saw Archer's noble phantasm that same day.

Like those poor souls, he also saw the light of hope represented by that 'sword'. Although humans had the potential to be evil and cruel, they also had the potential to be just the opposite.

He would follow his path to protect humans, and fight to change the twisted system of the world based on the sacrifice of the minority. Archer almost made it, he just missed saving himself. That was the only flaw in his noble phantasm.

If King of Fakers could, a person without any gift or talent, why couldn't he?

Then, with the decision made, he offered to take part in the final battle. He asked Siegfried to give him some advice to wield his power, and he gladly accepted his resolution.

Although that could not be called training, as he was beaten without being able to land a single attack, he learned the basics, and how to survive against overwhelmingly superior opponents.

In fact, Archer also joined in to help him, and he was an expert in that field.

After analyzing the condition of his body, his mentor found something surprising. Some of the power of Berserker of Black remained in his body after it revived him when he almost died fighting Saber of Red.

With this, he basically inherited the skills of the servant, the perpetual motion machine ability of Bridal Chest, Berserker's weapon, and Galvanism, which allowed him to absorb excess prana from the environment and turn it into electricity.

With this, he could simulate the effect of Archer's prana burst, and, in theory, instantly charge Balmung's power.

With the preparations ready, Ruler and the servant-master pairs of the black faction went to the airport they had rented to take the planes.

Before leaving, Sieg said goodbye to the Homunculi of the castle. Win or lose, he would not return, but planned to travel the world to achieve his goal.

The masters, including Caules who decided to follow his sister to the battlefield despite having lost his servant, would travel in a smaller jet behind all the commercial planes that would serve as the distraction. The servants would go over these, and Astolfo would lead the attack on the backs of his hypogriffin with his noble phantasm, with Sieg beside him to quickly replenish his prana.

Saber of Red and his master were a loose cannon that would take advantage of the distraction of the frontal attack and infiltrate the fortress.

Moments before takeoff, Archer and Saber bid farewell to their master.

"Fiore, I know I probably haven't been a good servant, always doing what I wanted, but to me you've been a very good master. You didn't treat me like a simple tool, and well... it's been a pleasure meeting you."

Yes, the goodbyes were definitely not Archer's strong point. Fiore couldn't help but giggle as she shook her head.

"No. I'm glad I summoned you, Archer. I don't know how to thank you in all that you've helped me, especially in choosing my future."

"So..."

"Yes. I have decided that I will become the heir of the Forvedge family, but I will not abandon my humanity. I will focus my research on improving that rotten, monster-ridden world that only seeks that damn Root, and who knows, maybe I'll find a solution to this..."

She glanced at her legs, the price to pay to follow that path. But in her eyes there were no more doubts or sadness, but determination.

"But the first step to securing that future is to win this battle. So, Archer, I give you permission to use your entire unlimited arsenal for your victory."

They both looked at each other with smiles on their faces. In fact, that was the first time Fiore saw her servant actually smile outside the cycle of dreams, and she couldn't help but feel warm.

Archer's gaze turned toward Caules. "I leave her in your hands from now on. Protect her when I am not here."

"Of course. As her younger brother, I will always be by her side no matter what."

Next to them, Saber and Gordes were staring at each other without saying anything. In the end, Gordes could not stand the discomfort and looked away.

"What? What do you want me to say?"

Siegfried's lips curled up a bit. "Master, you could at least be honest this time."

The magus grimaced and scratched his head. "Fine! I'll say it! Although we didn't get off on the right foot, you turned out to be a very good familiar, Saber. So I expect nothing more than victory in this battle."

After all those days together, he was able to draw from those words the true message he wanted to convey.

"I think the same master. Even though I didn't think so at first, I could see that deep down you were a good person. So I am proud to have been able to serve as your sword."

After that, both servants met with Ruler, Sieg and Astolfo.

Just about to leave for the final battle, Rider interrupted everyone. "Hey, you don't think this is a little bland."

Before all the raised eyebrows, he explained himself. "I know. Why doesn't someone give a motivating speech, like those given by Lancer?"

They all started looking at each other, until all eyes fell on Archer. This one, who was looking at Ruler, already found it odd that she was looking at him, but then he felt all the looks.

"Why me? I suck at making speeches. That's why charisma is not one of my skills."

"Is that so? I would say that your speeches inspired everyone here. Also, it is you who has a score to settle with Amakusa Shirou."

Seeing how everyone nodded to Rider's reasoning, he finally resigned himself.

"Fine, I'll try my best."

He coughed a little, and traced in his hand Merodach, the foundation of the sacred right to select the king, and the sword that gave him the title of King of Fakers. That would do the trick with his lack of charisma.

"Well, I guess I don't have to tell you that this will be the final battle. The fate of mankind will be at stake. We are faced with heroes of the age of the gods, and the realization of a miracle, so this is going to be really difficult."

He paused briefly to see if he was followed and continued. "However, for me, things are only impossible if you don't try and give it everything. Humanity, in spite of its weakness, prevailed in the face of all kind of adversity, even the gods. That is why..."

He raised the sword in his hand and pointed his blade toward the starry sky, as if defying the gods themselves.

"I want the word 'imposible' out of your heads! We are going to get that into Amakusa Shirou's head! We are going to win this battle despite having all the odds against us, and we are going to save everyone!"

Although the discourse could be improved, the sheer determination he showed was already inspiring in itself. The determination to achieve the miracle of 'saving everyone'.

"OOOOOHHHH!"

Initially it was only Rider who raised his spear and shouted excitedly, but in the end they all imitated him with their swords, and the banner in the case of Ruler. Some with more spirit than others, but all shared the same look full of determination.

* * *

**And that's all so far. What do you think? The next chapter will be the long-awaited climax, although I'm not sure whether to include it all in one very long chapter, or to separate it into two. With so much servants, there's a lot of fighting to cover.**

**As I said a few chapters ago, King of Fakers the distorted psychologist came into the picture to help people with their emotional problems, when he himself is the one who most needs help on those issues. Seen this way, the thing really sounds bad, but hey, he tried.**

**In Mordrer's case, family problems are something that must be resolved within the family. What King of Fakers got was for her to see her 'father' differently, and to rethink why she wanted to become King in the first place.**

**As for references, thought about eroges is a direct reference to my other active history. And if we get into captain reference mode, this line of Jeanne's _"if you keep thinking like that, you might end up regretting it someday"_ is a reference to the Fate route. Specifically, the scene in the park just before the final fight with Rider, where Saber basically tells that to Shirou after finally understanding her master's tendency to put others before himself.**

**And as for Jeanne, she's already figured out what it takes to fix King of Fakers mental problems. What he never had unlike the original Shirou, that is, a person like Saber, Rin or Sakura who helps him to love himself and realize that his life has a meaning. Well, in Sakura's case, she didn't actively do it, but rather it was the circumstances that forced Shirou to choose between her ideals and the person he loved. Now all that's left is for Jeanne to stop being as dense as Archer is.**

**As for the crossover with FGO, patience. That will come after this story.**

**Without further ado, as always, any constructive review, follow and fav is welcome, and motivates me to continue writing.**

**With this I say goodbye for now. Until we meet again!**


	7. Chapter 6: the beginning of the end

**See you again, people! Here is the next chapter of this story. As you can see, this chapter ended up being quite long by the standards of this story, and I decided not to include the entire end of this story in this chapter.**

**But, you will have action from beginning to end, so prepare the OST of your preference if you want to get more into the atmosphere. As for King of Fakers' fight, since it is not the only one that this chapter has, I always say in the final parts of my stories that you mut prepare the Emiya theme, but this time, my recommendation would be the OST Mighty Wind. People of culture will be able to intuit what Archer will use to defeat Achilles.**

**Without further ado, let the final battle begin!**

**Disclaimer I don't own any right over Type-Moon or the Fate franchise.**

* * *

The sun had already set long ago. The Hanging Gardens of Babylon crossed the skies already outside Romania with apparent tranquility. However, that wouldn't last long.

Amakusa Shirou had just entered the Great Grail, with the intention of setting in motion the miracle of the salvation of mankind once and for all.

Just before, he had had a conversation with Caster, William Shakespeare. As one of the most famous writers of tragedies in the world, the former Ruler servant asked him if he intended to make his story a tragedy.

This one responded by saying that, although it was very tempting, to see events unfold without his interference would be much more interesting. The man was really ecstatic to see which dream would triumph over the other.

His 'loyalty' was assured, only Assassin remained. Assyria's Queen did not have a very good track record in terms of loyalty. She herself confessed that she would like to see Shirou fall into despair, but deep down, she really wanted to see him succeed, see how far that man would go.

The talks were interrupted when Rider warned them of an imminent attack by the enemy.

Caster returned to his workshop, while Assassin immediately went to the throne room where the remaining servants of the red faction were gathered.

Already seated on her throne, through a projected image she could see what Rider was referring to. From the clouds had appeared a commercial plane, and was heading at great speed towards her flying fortress.

"Get ready to intercept them. Rider, first you will crush the enemy with your flying chariot." Semiramis, as her absent master's representative, issued her orders quickly.

"Not that I mid, but that will take quite some time to do it."

"Huh?" Assassin questioned the normally confident servant. However, another look at the projected image sufficed to understand what he meant. "What is this?"

The plane she had seen was not the only one. About twenty other planes were with it. But, that was not the only problem.

"Their magic energy signatures are too vague, you can't tell who's on each plane. Maybe thanks to some kind of bounded field."

"Save one exception." As the hero of charity said, the figure of a servant could be distinguished on the plane in the front.

It was Ruler. She was standing imposing on the head of the plane, with her banner in her hand waving and a look full of determination.

Rider looked at Archer with some concern. She had been rather gloomy the last few days, although she did not seem to be filled with hatred. Rather, she was full of doubts. Her stoic expression hardly changed when she saw the holy maiden.

"Trying to fool us with numbers? However, that's not enough to reach my Hanging Gardens. It can blow up all those metal bodies with ease. Rider, you go settle scores with those servants once and for all."

"Yosh! That steel junk will scatter along with Archer of Black." Trojan hero's expression showed a battle-hungry smile.

"I'll leave it to you. Archer, you are in charge of support. Aim at the masters."

"I refuse." Her answer, despite her flat tone, was blunt.

"Excuse me?"

"I agreed to work with you to achieve my wish, and shooting kids goes against it."

In fact, according to their information, the remaining masters of the black faction, with the exception of Saber of Black's, were quite young.

"Archer..." The Queen looked at the rebellious servant with annoyance and proceeded to rebuke her.

But, Rider stepped in to calm things down. "It's fine, Queen. While I'm dealing with Archer of Black, Sis can take on Ruler."

Well, she wanted to confront Archer of Black to resolve her doubts, but Rider was really insistent on fighting him, so she'd settle for settling scores with that murder pretending to be a saint.

After a few tense moments, Assassin let it go. "Fine. Then I shall face Rider of Black. Lancer, you will be our last line of defense and you will face Saber of Black."

"Got it."

"Now depart! The Great Grail is ours!"

* * *

On board the planes, Ruler and the servants of the black faction observed the flying fortress as they drew ever closer to it.

Although they had seen it before, and even been inside, it was still an impressive sight. It was amazing how something so huge and heavy could fly with apparent ease, especially with the huge hole Archer made to it on the side.

But this was no time to marvel at a mystery of the age of the gods.

"Amakusa Shirou Tohkisada!" Ruler shouted at the top of her lungs the name of the leader of the enemy faction, as if it were a battle cry.

_"Lower your voice, how unsightly."_ The response was immediate. A projected image showing Assassin of Red appeared before Jeanne. _"My master is busy trying to save mankind with the Great Grail. We have no time for you right now."_

"Assassin of Red... is he really trying to save mankind with the Great Grail?"

_"Who knows. But if you want to stop my master, you must reach him. Moreover, you must overcome the servants first!_

With that said, the image faded, and a huge prana beam was fired from the fortress. The attack went through one of the planes, splitting it in half like a fragile twig.

As if this were the starting gun, what looked like a green comet came out of the flying fortress and went at an enormous speed towards the black servants.

"Archer of Black!" It was Rider of Red, riding on his battle chariot. All his attention and thirst for battle was focused on the white-haired archer. "The time has come! Let's enjoy this fight to the fullest!"

In response to his statement, Ruler and Saber felt a great accumulation of prana and bloodlust near them.

Archer held his huge black bow firmly with his left hand, while with the other hand he pull back the bowstring with the 'arrow' that emitted that bloodlust. It was a black sword that had been twisted around a thin core, and with all the prana that had been pumped into it, it was emitting a crimson aura.

"Hrunting!" With his eyes fixed on his target, Archer shouted the name of the noble phantasm and released the bowstring.

The roar of the Red Plains Hound rumbled as it turned into a magic bullet and 'killed' the distance between it and its prey.

Rider saw the projectile come towards him at a speed several times higher than the sound, and made his chariot rise rapidly upwards to avoid its trajectory.

His reaction time had been perfect, and he would have prevented the attack, if it were a normal arrow. However, Hrunting would not stop pursuing its prey as long as Archer considered him his target.

The magic bullet 'bent', correcting its trajectory to the most optimal path to reach the flying chariot.

The impact was imminent and inevitable. The night lit up in crimson with the energy released in the crash.

Rider went out of the smoke practically unharmed. Seeing that dodging was not possible, he decided to concentrate all the overflowing energy of his noble phantasm on defense, resisting the impact of Beowulf's sword.

The chariot reset its trajectory to the plane where Archer was, and it would only take a few seconds to cross the distance.

But, this was already within Archer's plans. Practically just as he fired the noble phantasm, traced a second Hrunting, loaded it into the bow and began pouring prana into it.

It would take about twenty seconds to prepare it, accumulating more energy than the previous one. It was a strategy that consisted of shooting five consecutive Hruntings, each with more magical energy than the previous one, and thus taking five seconds more for each shot. The first four shots would weaken the opponent's defenses, and the fifth and most powerful shot would finish him.

The only flaw in this strategy was the time between each shot, but it could be easily compensated, as Archer could shoot targets four kilometers away.

However, on this occasion, although there was quite a distance between them, Rider could cross it before he could shoot. And besides, Archer was also moving towards his opponent.

Therefore, the nameless archer was forced to improvise. Imitating the battle tactic of the King of Heroes, about twenty noble phantasms appeared above him, their blades pointing to the Greek hero.

They were all anti-immortal weapons, and they were fired in unison. This forced Rider to redirect his trajectory to dodge the weapons, giving Archer the time to finish preparing the second Hrunting.

The bowstring was released again, and the blood-thirsty magic bullet struck Achilles' noble phantasm. The night lit up again in the light of the crash.

Rider repeated his earlier tactic. It was the only thing he could do against that attack, although he could see his defences dwindling with the second shot.

He finally reached Archer's plane, passing through and destroying it as if it were made of sandpaper. King of Fakers leapt from the wreckage, toward the plane on his right, pushing the fight away so his allies could proceed without intervention.

Seeing that Rider was following him closely, and it would take him only a few seconds to get through the plane he was on, he immediately jumped to another plane. In the middle of the air he projected an E rank nameless noble phantasm, altered it, loaded it into his bow and shot it aiming at the welding of the left wing of the plane he had just been on.

The projectile exploded on impact, tearing off the wing and causing the plane to destabilize and turn to obstruct Rider's view.

The distraction lasted only a few seconds, before the chariot passed through as if nothing, but it was enough time for Archer to project another round of anti-immortal noble phantasms and shoot them.

Rider was again forced to keep his distance and dodge the legendary weapons that were fired at him like mere arrows. The third Hrunting was loaded into the black bow, and the process was repeated.

It was a strategy very expensive on prana, but if Archer wanted to win, the first step was to get Rider off his flying chariot. Besides, he was no longer sparing to use his master's prana to not tire her. It would be an insult to do so after she got her resolve to fight in this battle.

Meanwhile, the arrows soon rained down with emerald trails on Archer's allies. Most of them aimed at Ruler.

She quickly spun her banner in front of her, blocking and deflecting most of the projectiles. The metal around her was quickly filled with holes, but nothing that would compromise the aircraft.

Seeing that the normal projectiles wouldn't work, Atalanta loaded a single arrow into Tauropolos and poured a moderate amount of prana into it. Her bow was a weapon blessed by the gods, and by drawing it to its limits, its arrows would have a force of impact equivalent to a A rank .

She released the bowstring, her impassive gaze did not change at any time. She had come to the conclusion that, in order to prevent a tragedy like Assassin's from recurring, all she could do was to help her current master in his ridiculous plan.

She still had doubts, and still didn't like the man and his servant, but the odds of Archer of Black beating a hero like Achilles were miniscule. Therefore, she put aside her doubts, and focused solely on bringing down her opponents

Just as she fired her arrow, another huge prana beam was fired by the defenses of The Hanguing Gardens. The ray struck Ruler's banner, and her enormous magical resistance made it bounce back, destroying Archer of Red's arrow.

"Tsk." That did upset Atalanta, her expression filling with annoyance and displeasure. That woman really gets on her nerve.

The chaste hunter jumped from her firing spot. "Assassin, take me to where Ruler is!"

If they were to get in the way of each other while shooting at the enemy servants, the best thing to do was to head there for a one-on-one duel without interruption.

Apparently, Assassin at least listened to her when a magic circle appeared beneath her, and when she crossed it, she was teleported right on top of the plane Ruler was on.

Without wasting time, Atalanta bombarded the holy maiden with her arrows. This one was forced to zigzag along the surface, evading as she could the projectiles that were said to pierce through anything.

Archer of Red landed on the other side of the aircraft, and they both looked into each other's eyes. The tension in the environment was enormous, but there were no traces of anger or hatred in either. The environment could be described as a deadly calm.

"Archer of Red... are you really going to follow that man's absurd plan?"

"I'm not going to listen to what a fake saint like you tells me. The miracle that man plans to accomplish will prevent that tragedy from happening again. And if you stand in the way, I will destroy you."

"Unfortunately, that's something I can't allow. So, I won't hesitate to destroy you either."

With deadly glances, both servants began their battle.

Assassin's attention then focused on Rider of Black. He had put himself in front of the planes, challenging her directly.

"Wasn't the last time enough? I don't know what plan they have, but they won't come out alive." She just looked at him annoyingly.

"Heh, this time it will be different." The pink-haired servant responded with confidence.

Legends said the moon had robbed the hero Astolfo of his sanity. That night there was no moon, so it could be said that the servant had finally become serious and was going with everything.

"Hold on tight, master!"

"Okay. Let's go!"

The hyppogriff wove between the rain of prana beams that the fortress fired to try to shoot them down. Their target was the huge rock slabs with intricate runes that constituted Assassin's defences.

When they were close to the first, it again fired the huge prana beam. Assassin smiled with confidence. There was no way they could resist the most powerful attack of her Hanguing Gardens.

But, Astolfo proved her wrong. He summoned his grimoire and proceeded to pronounce its true name.

"Casseur de Logistille!" The pages of the noble phantasm shone with a golden light and levitated to form a barrier in front of the servant.

The prana beam struck the barrier, and to Semiramis' immense surprise, it was unable to break through. The hypogriff continued to advance as if nothing, as the beam scattered like a cascade crashing into a rock.

"Take a look! This is the true power of this book! It's great! This is not a problem!"

Finally they reached the first defense. Rider raised his spear, and pushed it forward like a whip, piercing the rock and destroying it. Without stopping for a second, master and servant headed for the second defense.

"I see. They were hiding something like this. But, it seems that that noble phantasm only works as a defense against my magecraft. Lancer, they are approaching. Bring them down."

Observing the situation, Assassin ordered Lancer, their last line of defense, to intervene.

The second defense was easily traversed, but, when they reached the third, they met the hero of charity, standing stunning upon it.

"My apologies, but you're going down." With that statement, he jumped at them at great speed with his flame prana burst.

"Your show ends now." His golden spear pierced the hypogriff mercilessly, but he frowned when he noticed no resistance. Both the beast and the riders disappeared in specks of light.

"Dimensional shift!" That was the only conclusion Lancer could reach. Seconds later, he was pulled out of his stupor by a voice behind him.

"You are exactly right!"

Without stopping to think, the Indian servant turned quickly, swinging his spear to cut his opponent. But, again, its blade just cut empty air.

"I am speechless. To think that a hero like you would exist in this world." He praised as he turned in the direction in which he now felt the presence of Astolfo.

"Your compliments please me greatly. It may be something like a limited-time event, but I'm special tonight. You better not let down your guard!"

More than a fight between the two servants, it was more of a chase. Rider could not hope to match in brute power a divine spirit like Karna, but that was not necessary.

His goal was to destroy the fortress's defenses, so he just dodged with his dimensional shift Lancer's flames. The speed that this one reached using his prana burst was on par with that of Rider's hyppogriff, so it became a drag race.

And Astolfo had the odds against. Using that ability in such an abusive way was draining his reserves quickly. Even if Sieg could replenish them as quickly, the enormous strain of using it was building up.

However, the aid came in the form of a silver blur that crashed into Karna.

With the defenses distracted and aimed at Rider, and half of them already destroyed, the plane Saber was on had been able to get close enough for him to intervene.

Both servants crashed into one of the huge rock slabs and passed through, landing at the flying fortress.

Karna's eyes shone as he recognized his new opponent. "I see that you have come to fulfill your promise, Saber of Black."

"Of course. It is time to end our duel and enjoy this fight. Get ready, Lancer of Red!"

Karna watched as this time, Siegfried was no longer full of doubts and oppressed by his master's orders. This one now shed a huge will to fight and determination. He could not prevent a smile from peering out at his lips.

Both servants threw themselves at each other. The clash of their weapons staggered the whole place, starting a battle of titans.

Wishing their ally luck, Sieg and Astolfo continued their task.

In a short time, there were only two defenses left, but, Rider had more and more trouble keeping his noble phantasm active.

"Only... two... more..." Not only was he, but his hypogriff was also reaching its limit.

The bombardment of prana beams began to slowly overwhelm them. Just before the penultimate defense, one of these grazed Rider's leg, leaving it in the flesh.

He endured the pain with sheer determination. If he fell, not only would his master die, but Ruler and Archer would not be able to board the fortress and stop Amakusa Shirou.

The penultimate defense was barely traversed. In front of them was the last one, which was beginning to charge another of those huge prana beams.

Rider turned to look at Sieg, his expression extremely serious. "Master, will you stay with this failure of a hero until the end?"

This one responded equally earnestly. "Of course yes, Rider. I fully trust you. Let's do this together."

"Okay then. Here we go!"

Taking the resistance of the hypogriff to its limits, master and servant threw themselves without a shred of fear on their faces toward the last defense.

The prana ray was fired, but they did not change their trajectory. They plunged into it without thinking, with their goal being the only thing in their mind.

Soon after, the defense shattered. From the dust and debris, the figures of Rider and Sieg fell to the fortress.

His mount had vanished, and with his last strength, Astolfo clutched his master and turned his back so he would be the one who hit the ground.

After the crash, Sieg, being the least injured of the two, got up as best he could and looked with concern at his servant.

"Rider, are you okay?"

This one, with great effort, answered him. "I am still... alive. Don't worry... master, I just need... to rest a little."

That eased Sieg a bit, but they didn't have time to relax.

"To think that a little girl like you and a homunculus could damage my Hanging Gardens..."

Assassin of Red appeared near them, and by her expression, she was not very happy. She raised her hands, and several magic circles appeared above her.

"Die."

With Astolfo in such a pitiful condition, Sieg would have to be the one to defeat the servant in front of them.

"By my command seal I-" He prepared to transform his body into Siegfried's with his command seals, but was interrupted by the sound of an engine.

"What!?"

They both looked in the direction it came from, and saw a small plane descending directly towards them. It was the small plane in which Saber of Red and their master traveled, which had slipped because of the heat of battle.

"I came to take back the Holy Grail, you turtle bug woman!" Mordred's voice was clearly heard despite the distance.

"Saber!" Assassin spat out the name with disgust as she prepared a barrier to block the incoming attack.

Sieg could only see stunned as the plane crashed into the servant in a kamikaze attack, releasing a large explosion.

Without much thought, he grabbed Rider carefully, loaded him on his shoulders and got out of there as quickly as possible.

As he ran without a fixed course, something in the sky caught his attention. Forcing his eyes, he could see the figure of Ruler falling toward the fortress, with Archer of Red following her closely.

Rider observed his master's worried look. "Master, go... I will stay here... resting."

Sieg opened his mouth to answer him, but closed it again when he saw his eyes. He nodded and, after gently leaving Astolfo on a pillar, ran to where Ruler had landed.

* * *

Jeanne had been pressured by Atalanta's great agility. She had been bombarded with arrows from all angles, without having the opportunity to land a decisive blow.

The plane could not stand the fight, and ended up being shattered. Luckily, she ended up landing in the flying fortress.

Without losing a single second, she raised her head to look at her opponent. Atalanta was still several meters above, and instead of shooting at her, she aimed two arrows at the sky.

Jeanne's eyes opened as she recognized that this was the activation of her noble phantasm, Phoebus Catastrophe.

The two arrows disappeared in the sky, and shortly after, thousands of powerful projectiles descended upon her. An attack comparable even to the rain of swords that had descended upon Caster's noble phantasm within Archer's reality marble.

She immediately prepared her banner to display her defensive noble phantasm, Luminosite Eternelle, but was interrupted.

"Balmung!"

A huge blue wave of prana passed over her head, spraying all the projectiles from Archer of Red's noble phantasm.

Seconds later, her eyes saw Saber of Black land in front of her, but her ability as Ruler to discern a servant's identity did not say the same.

"Sieg? What are you doing here?"

He answered her without turning, his gaze fixed on Atalanta, who had landed a few meters in front of them.

"Leave her to me, Ruler. You go and stop Amakusa Shirou."

Seeing his resolution, she didn't bother to argue with him. Nor did they have the luxury of wasting their time doing so. Instead, she wished him luck and ran to the inside of the fortress.

"Are you going to stand in my way too, boy? You saw Assassin's past as well, so you should know that what Amakusa Shirou is doing is correct."

"Yeah, I saw that too. But just because he is correct does not mean that he is right. The fact that humanity will be saved does not strictly mean that everyone will be happy. And that's what Archer fights for. You saw his sword too, didn't you?"

That hit close to home. Her stoic face loosened, letting her doubts arise again. She could not deny the boy's words. Still, as she was, there was no turning back.

"Shut up! Even if he got them happy in the end, he certainly killed them! Even if you are a child, I will not hesitate to destroy you if you oppose my wish."

Being a bundle of doubts, Atalanta no longer knew what was right and what was not. So, in the end she ended up sticking to her current master's plan, influenced by her nature as a servant. She could normally easily oppose to something as subtle as that, but in her present poor state of mind she was incapable.

Sieg understood that, and prepared his sword. "If my words cannot reach you, then I will show you my resolve."

* * *

Archer was on top of the last one, flying over the flying fortress. The last Hrunting already loaded on his black bow and almost ready to be shot.

His opponent, Rider of Red, was still riding on his battle chariot, several meters above him. The defenses of the noble phantasm had managed to withstand Archer's third and fourth shot as well, but seeing the amount of prana he was pouring into the fifth, it wouldn't stand any longer.

Achilles knew that, and so he had already prepared a countermeasure for it. He stopped ascending in the air, and rushed towards Archer. It was a last all-or-nothing attack.

Archer pulled the bowstring to the max, causing the metal to squeal for all the force accumulated. The 'arrow' was already ready and overflowing prana, becoming a broken phantasm.

"Hrunting!" The bowstring was released, and the sword pursued its prey at tremendous speed.

Just a fraction of a second later, Achilles put in place his plan. He let go of the reins of the chariot and jumped back, leaving it to charge alone towards Archer.

Archer's eyes opened when he saw that. Even as an archer who can shoot his mark hundreds of meters away, he is still subject to a ironclad rule.

An arrow, once fired, cannot change its target. Whatever arrows that guarantees a definite hit he may have, a bowman cannot resist this law.

The target from the beginning had been Rider, who was riding the chariot. Even if Archer had aimed at the chariot, the result would have been the same. The chariot was one of Rider's noble phantasms, a crystallization of his legend, so calling it an extension of his power wouldn't be wrong.

The red demonic bullet and the descending green comet passed a few inches from each other, following their path towards their respective targets.

The broken phantasm crashed into Rider, causing a huge explosion that rocked the skies.

That attack would certainly have instantly killed even the majority of heroic spirits. But Rider had a divine protection that canceled out any attack that did not come from someone with a certain rank of divinity, so he was unharmed from the attack.

On the other hand, Rider's mount was not as abysmally fast as Hrunting, so Archer had time to jump out of the plane before it was destroyed.

The battle had ended in stalemate, with both attacks failing to destroy their target.

However, who was clearly in a disadvantageous position was Archer. He was in free fall towards the flying fortress. The fall wasn't a problem being a servant, the problem was that, in the middle of the air, he couldn't dodge Rider's next attack.

The chariot returned to its owner, and descended again towards the helpless Archer. To be struck by that noble phantasm would inevitably mean death, so the nameless servant had no choice but to face the attack head on.

"_I am the bone of my sword. _Rho Aias!" After pronouncing the first line of his aria, pull from the hill of swords the most powerful shield he had.

The shield of Ajax the Great, sublimated in a conceptual weapon in the form of a flower of seven petals, manifested itself with its seven layers in front of him.

The initial impact was tremendous. The first layer, even having the defensive power of a fortress, broke down within seconds. The pain came an instant later. He and the shield were one, so his body received the consequent damage.

It was quite ironic to see the only two existences that managed to stop the hero Hector's spear colliding.

Both descended at great speed towards the Hanging Gardens. Along the way, two more layers of Rho Aias were destroyed.

Archer's back slammed into the floor of one of the fortress's courtyards. They didn't cause a huge explosion, but the impact swept the area, leaving it completely flat.

Rider flew back into the sky, preparing for the last attack. Archer rose as he could, his body badly damaged. The fourth layer ended up breaking, causing his body to suffer more damage.

Still, the wounds were not very serious, and they were slowly healing with the prana he received from Fiore. He could still fight perfectly.

He dismissed Rho Aias. More than half the layers had been destroyed, and he doubted that it would resist another attack like that. The strategy had failed, so he had only one option left. Use brute force.

"Trace, on!" Archer traced in his hands the most powerful sword in his arsenal, Merodach. The sword that chose him as king to save Britain and the symbol of his legend along with Kanshou and Bakuya and his 'sword'.

There could be swords in his Unlimited Blade Works that surpass Merodach's raw power, such as Excalibur's image. But, because of its affinity with his legend, the cost to project the prototype all the legends of swords that select the king was much lower, and its power barely degraded from the original.

He moved the sword to his right side, with the blade pointing to the floor, in preparation to swing it upwards, and began to pump prana into it.

Rider continued to ascend to practically a green dot in the sky, and already with sufficient height, began to descend at full speed towards Archer.

"TROIAS TRAGOIDIA!"

"MERODACH!"

The beam of light that burns everything it touches was fired upwards, while the green comet descended again from the heavens.

They both clashed with a huge crash, shaking the fortress and illuminating the heavens. The golden light pushed against the overflowing prana of the chariot, unable to penetrate and disperse. However, the sheer force of the beam prevented Rider from moving forward, with both remaining in an even struggle.

The fight would be determined by who would run out of prana before.

Moments later, the difference began to be made. Slowly but surely, Rider began to move forward, pushing back the torrent of scorching light.

It was an obvious result. Even if the power of the noble phantasms was very even, Archer had been a normal human in life, while Rider was a demigod. The amount of prana they could handle had no point of comparison.

Even giving it all, King of Fakers could not overcome all the odds against him.

But, he was not alone now. There was a girl who supported him to overcome even fate.

_"Archer, by my command seal, I order you to destroy that chariot!"_

Archer had already expected something like this to happen, so he planned with his master beforehand. Fiore had not used any of her command seals throughout the war. And this being the final battle, they didn't have to spare them anymore.

The order was transmitted in the form of a huge amount of prana flooding Archer's body. He wasted no time and forced all the energy into his sword, and it transformed it into heat values.

"HAAAAAAAAAHHHH!"

The golden beam of light grew twice as large, and swallowed Rider and his noble phantasm completely. The clouds were divided by the attack, as if it were a huge sword cutting through them, and the starry sky was fully visible.

The Merodach in Archer's hands shattered. If it had been the original weapon, it might have withstood all that power, but being a projection it couldn't.

He took a few moments to catch his breath. Achilles' noble phantasm had indeed been destroyed, but its owner was far from being defeated. This was only the first step towards victory.

As he had expected, the servant soon landed beside him. His smile even brighter on his face.

"That's a powerful sword you have there, Archer of Black. You sincerely impressed me. So..." He left his relaxed posture and prepared his hero-killer spear. "How about we start the second round?"

Archer responded to his opponent's invitation by tracing the pair of swords he felt most comfortable with, Kanshou and Bakuya. They were the swords he had used most during his life, and with which he had developed and perfected his fighting style.

He stepped forward. His first move, predicting Rider's counterattack and how to avoid it. He kicked the ground, crossing in an instant the ten meters that separated them, and swinging Kanshou to his only weak spot.

Predictably, his attack was easily parried by his opponent. Being the only point at which Archer could cause harm, Rider barely had to watch the attack.

The storm of steel, sounds of metal shocks and sparks began right after.

* * *

Sieg was having a hard time.

"Balmung!"

He swung Siegfried's greatsword again, unleashing a twilight wave of destruction in front of him. Once again, the barrage of projectiles created by Atalanta's noble phantasm was completely obliterated, bringing the fight back to a standstill.

This situation had already been repeated several times. Although it looked like the homunculus was taking the lead by countering Archer of Red's attacks, he knew things weren't like that at all.

His power to transform his body into Siegfried had a limited time, and he put enormous strain on his body. Every second he passed in that form, Siegfried's heart in his chest tried to overwrite his existence.

Thanks to the skills he inherited from Frankenstein, he had managed to extend the time of transformation, and not be completely drain of prana in the first use of Balmung. Moreover, he overcame that, unleashing the power of the noble phantasm in repetition.

However, Atalanta, despite her unstable mental state, was still one of the best archers that humanity had seen. Even if the time between each use of Balmung was minimal, that was enough for her to keep Sieg at bay with her arrows, preventing him from approaching a range in which he had the advantage.

The Armor of Fafnir could mitigate most of the damage that Sieg received, but, although he could be considered a servant in that state, he had no master to replenish his prana and no pasive regeneration.

Atalanta knew that opposing him in raw power was suicide, so she was simply holding out until Sieg's powers were exhausted.

And Sieg knew it too. To continue at that pace would only lead to his defeat, and that was something he could not allow. If he fell here, Archer of Red would go to stop Ruler, or worse, seeing her obsession with Archer, she would go to confront him.

He had sideswiped the huge pillar of golden light engulfing Rider, so that meant that Archer had managed to move on to the second phase of his plan. The most complicated of all, to get the divine protection of Achilles annulled.

If Atalanta joined her fellow Greek hero, Archer would inevitably lose.

Besides, Sieg didn't want to fall before he could show his resolve to his opponent. Atalanta had been the most affected of all to see Assassin's sad fate, and now she was a bundle of doubts and regrets.

He did not have a 'sword' like Archer's that could show her the light of hope, but he hoped that showing her his determination, the same determination that all his companions shared to fight in this battle, could open her eyes.

So he was going to risk everything in the next move. He had kept his trump card until the end, and it was time to use it.

He activated the other skill he inherited from Berserker, Galvanism. The electricity started coming out of his feet, and imitating Archer's prana burst, he let it explode. Leaving a large crater on the ground, Sieg shot out at an enormous speed toward the opponent. It would hardly take him a few seconds to cross the great distance between them.

Seconds that Atalanta did not miss. Despite her initial surprise at her opponent's sudden change of plans, she reacted quickly and deployed her noble phantasm.

This time, she offered her prayer to the gods with one arrow, so all the projectiles were concentrated in one area, aiming at Sieg who could not dodge them in the air.

Balmung lit up with its twilight aura in preparation, but it was not yet time to release its power. If he did so to counter Atalanta's attack again, the recoil would cause him to lose all his momentum, and Atalanta would take the opportunity to dodge him and jump to another point from which to shoot him.

If he wanted to win, he had to take risks. He faced the rain of projectiles head-on and without hesitation, testing his entire training with Saber and Archer.

Trying to avoid all the arrows was impossible, so he only focused on stopping and deflecting all the arrows that aimed at areas of his body that would cause fatal injuries or kill him instantly.

The Armor of Fafnir barely prevented his limbs from being destroyed, yet he became a bloody mess. However, that did not weaken his resolve one bit.

"OOOOOOOOOOHHH!"

Enduring pain with sheer determination, as all his allies in this battle had done, he reached out to Atalanta.

"No way!" She quickly loaded an arrow in her bow and aimed it at the boy's head. At such a short distance, she would have no problem piercing his defensive noble phantasm and killing him instantly.

But, something stopped her. It was the look she saw in the boy. That look full of resolve to follow his way to the end, even if his goal was almost impossible.

That small hesitation of just a fraction of a second decided the outcome of the battle.

"BALMUNG!"

Sieg swung the sword toward his opponent. Its twilight light concentrated, releasing itself in the form of a compressed slash that pierced Atalanta's torso.

It was a totally fatal wound. Atalanta staggered backwards, as she spat blood and vanished.

But before that, she took one last look at the boy. "I see... So that's the determination of that man... to pursue an impossible dream..."

Those were her last words before returning to the throne of heroes. Sieg could only hope that it would help her find her answer.

He fell to the ground without energy. His transformation was over, but the wounds remained in his real body. They were not mortal, but he won't be able to move any muscle in quite time, and the loss of blood began to cloud his mind.

With his duty done, it was now the turn of Ruler and the others.

* * *

It was a literal storm of attacks leading to death. Each thrust with enormous force, speed and precision that would overwhelm even most heroes.

His spear, Diatrekhon Aster Lonkhe, boasted of having the most powerful thrust, having pierced the chest of countless heroes who fought against its wielder, Achilles, the hero of the Trojan War.

Standing up to such a whirlwind of destruction was comparable even to receiving the power of The Gate of Babylon, and that, coming from the guy who fought the King of Heroes in the previous Holy Grail War, is something.

And, opposing such an unstoppable force, was me.

Reading ten steps ahead, ensuring five more seconds of survival with each attack parried or deflectedd. Using the prana burst at the precise moments to compensate for my lack of speed and strength, and with just the strictly necesary power so I don't overdo myself and use my remaining prana in the most efficient way.

Practically, the only attack I was allowed was the first one. I failed to cause the opening necessary to damage his weak spot, his right heel.

It could be said that it was a miracle to have lasted a few minutes without being torn apart.

I used all my vast combat experience throughout my life, manifested in an A+ rank Eye of Mind, along with my perfected and polished fighting style to face much superior opponents. And yet, this could only be called surviving.

His spear moved in a wide swing, and I decided to stop the attack and let myself be carried away by the impulse.

"Kuh!" Kanshou and Bakuya broke in the clash as I jumped back to regroup myself.

"Haa... haa... haa..." It's hard for me to keep my breath steady, with my body, even as a servant, reaching its limit. My body is so hot that even steam comes out of my mouth with every breath.

Without losing a second, I project the married swords back into my hands. I jumped ten meters back, but someone with agility as high as Rider would hardly take an instant to cross such a distance.

I can block five more attacks from Rider, but I can't say what will happen after that. So I have to find an opening in the next five attacks and hit his weak spot.

However, the attack I prepared for never came. Rider stayed in place, and to my surprise, the smile he kept during the entire fight was now a serious face.

"Something's been bothering me for a while."

One of my eyebrows reflexively rose upon hearing his strange comment. So far, he seemed to have been enjoying the fight to the fullest.

"And that would be?" Talking to the person I'm fighting to the death is not something that I find very sensible. But, I took advantage of the situation to rest a little and let my passive regeneration heal my wounds a little.

"You're certainly a skilled warrior who fought on countless battlefields, but, I can't see any pride in your swords."

He didn't lack reason. Kanshou and Bakuya were two swords that were forged without vanity, and lacked a sense of purpose found in other swords. And that is why, as a person without pride of his own, are the swords with which I feel most comfortable.

"You are right on that. I have always considered my magecraft and my skills as simple tools to achieve my goal. If there was anything you could say that I'm proud of, that would certainly be my dream."

"I see. That's a good point of view..." My answer seemed to satisfy him, but there was still something else bothering him. "But if that's true, then why are you conserving your energy, Archer of Black?"

"That's..." My eyes widened for an instant. His words contained a deeper meaning.

How good is it to keep energy in reserve?

If I don't defeat Rider here I will die. But, after this battle, I still have to face Amakusa Shirou.

I know this time I'm not alone, I have allies who are also fighting for the same cause. But something tells me that I'm the one who has to face that man. Also, as Astolfo said, we both have a score to settle with the other.

But... that won't make sense if I can't get to him. And, that would mean sacrificing my chances to beat him in order to beat Rider.

I can't do that. Dying here won't do any good, but it's no use if I can't stop Amakusa Shirou.

"Archer. I will return to where Amakusa Shirou is after defeating you. Do you understand? The holy maiden will have to face me and my master together."

That's impossible. Ruler won't stand a chance against both of them at the same time. And even if Rider were her only opponent, if I don't even manage to destroy his invulnerability, she won't be able to beat him either.

"Rider, you..."

"Sincerely, although the salvation of mankind is a good thing, I still think Amakusa Shirou's plan is ridiculous. My only wish is to be able to continue living like a hero, and I agree with you that if you want to achieve your dream, you should do it on your own. So..."

His fighting spirit roared up in that moment. "I want to have a glorious battle with you, and that we can both enjoy it as proud warriors. But, so far I've only been fighting an emotionless machine. I want you to come to me with everything you have, King of Fakersr! I want you to show me that determination to achieve your impossible dream!"

Well... he was right.

Throughout my life I realized that planning things in advance is the best option in most situations.

However, my victory here is something impossible if I don't give it my all, so planning my next fight and preparing for it in advance makes no sense.

From the beginning, I should have stopped thinking about it and doing things with the approach that I've always felt better. That is to say, going head-on and improvising.

Still, saying it was easier than doing it. My opponent is a demigod who surpassed me in every way, and is virtually invulnerable to any of my attacks.

Another day at the office. I was losing count of how many times I found myself in a situation like this a long time ago.

My mind quickly went through all my possibilities.

Throwing him anti-immortal noble phantasms won't do. Last time, I was counting on Saber's help to distract him.

Unlimited Blade Works was also ruled out. I barely have prana left to deploy it, and even though Rider is a battle maniac, I doubt he'll sit idly by while I cast a seven-line spell right in his face.

My eyes then settled on the swords in my hands. I had only one option left if I wanted to find the fatal opening that would allow me to win. I'd have to make a few minor adjustments to the technique, but it'll do.

I dropped my tense posture and my cold expression. As Rider said, this was not a simple pointless fight to death. I will fulfill his wish, and this time, I will try to fight up to his expectations.

"I apologize if I offended you, Rider. This time, I will go with everything. I will show you the culmination of my work with these swords, and the true meaning behind them." As I said that, I crossed my arms in front of me, leaving the blades pointing up.

"Any taken. That's much better." His wild smile reappeared on his face, as he leaned forward in preparation to throw himself at me.

The place was completely silent, just hearing the explosions on the other side of the fortress that surely were the fight between Siegfried and Karna.

This fight would be decided in the next few seconds, so the tension in the environment was so dense that it could be cut with a knife.

"_Spirit and technique, flawless and firm."_

Taking the lead, I charge them with prana and throw both swords sideways. In the middle of the air, the swords draw an arc so they intersect right on Rider's neck.

A seemingly senseless attack, because the blades wouldn't damage him even if the attack landed.

Still, my opponent took the trouble to block them. With a couple of swings of his spear, he redirected both blades that attacked him at the same time from different angles behind him.

I find myself unarmed now, but my opponent knows full well that I can rearm myself at any time. I quickly load in my mind the plane of the next weapon I was going to trace, and begin the projection process as quickly as possible.

My opponent, without wanting to give me time to finish the process, throws himself at me. The distance is crossed in just a heartbeat, and his spear is barely inches from stringing my chest.

But that was enough time. The huge axe-sword used by the Berserker of the previous Holy Grail War appears in my hand, and I immediately unleash his technique.

"_Set, Nine Lives Blade Works."_

My body reproduced the giant's immense strength, and surpassed my opponent's speed with godspeed. I aimed the eight simultaneous strikes on the spear that brought a certain death.

I couldn't even perform the full technique. At the fifth slash, the stone slab in the form of a sword broke. But, that was to be expected. Due to lack of time, I omitted some steps in the process of tracing, only doing those necessary to reproduce the technique.

Still, I got my objective. My sudden boost on strength caught Achilles by surprise, and his spear flew out of his hands to plunge into the ground a few metres behind him.

Taking advantage of his slight moment of surprise, I trace the second pair of married swords into my hands, and swing Bakuya directly on his left heel.

The blade is about to touch his weak point, but showing his incredible reaction time, his left arm moves rapidly downwards. A silver shield with a symbol of a cross in its center appears in his hand and struck my sword, destroying it instantly.

"That was a very good try, King of Fakers. But, this is the end-!" Even unarmed, Achilles was an expert in the world's oldest martial art, Pankration, so he would have no problem destroying me with his bare hands.

However, this was already within my plans. He had already shown the absurd amount of four noble phantasms, so having a fifth was within my expectations. In fact, after fighting the King of Heroes, I know what the magus usually say that a heroic spirit is usually summoned with only one noble phantasm is pure bullshit.

"_Our strength rips the mountains."_

"What-!?" His right fist had been retreated to destroy my head with his great strength, but it stops when he feels a sudden pain in his heel. We both felt his divine protection crumble quickly.

Kanshou and Bakuya were married swords, so once separated one will return to the other no matter the distance. The Kanshou I had threw recognized the Bakuya that was in my hands a few moments earlier as its partner and returned with to meet it again, stabbing the heel of Achilles that was in the middle of its trajectory.

Disarming him to try to attack his weak spot had been nothing more than an elaborate feint, with the sole purpose of making him forget the first pair of swords.

But it didn't end here. The fight wasn't won yet. Although his invulnerability had been destroyed, that was only the second step towards victory. The wound on the heel was certainly debilitating, but it was far from being mortal.

"_Our swords split the water."_

Without giving him a moment's rest, I quickly swing Kanshou towards his chest. He reacted just as quickly again, his left hand with the shield moving fast to block my attack.

But this time, Achilles did notice the surprise attack coming from behind him. "Another one?"

He tilted his body to the left, dodging the Bakuya from the first pair by a few inches, and at the same time swinging his shield, destroying the Kanshou in my hand.

Time freezes while we both evaluate each other's condition. The exchange ended in a stalemate. I was unarmed, but his severed heel reduced his speed considerably.

And, the purpose behind my technique had been accomplished. His posture was completely ruined, and at the cost of stopping my last attack, he had left himself wide open.

"_Our names reach the imperial vila."_

"Ah..."

The expression of my opponent is frozen. In my empty hands appears the third and last pair of married swords.

Pumping a lot of prana into them, their blades lengthen twice their original length. Their blunt part splinters, making them look like a pair of crane wings.

"_The two of us cannot hold the heavens together!"_

I cut his defenseless body from both sides. His internal organs, along with his spiritual core, are completely destroyed.

The fight was over. That wound was completely fatal even to a servant with the battle continuation skill. His body would soon fade away.

Rider stood still spitting blood. But, despite being defeated, his smile remained on his face.

"Magnificient... Truly splendid... I guess the legends didn't exaggerate... when they said you accomplished the impossible... Such determination... that's how heroes should be."

He slowly raised his armed hand with his shield. I raised an eyebrow at that. There was no longer any hostile intention coming from him, so it seemed like he was offering me his noble phantasm.

"Take it... You'll need it more than I... You know that already, don't you? This is the only way you can... beat Lancer..."

"But, why are you giving this to me?"

"Well... you know... my wish is to continue living like a hero, but in this battle... I end up being one of the villains... So, I wanted to do something to make it up..."

"That's not entirely true, Achilles. I don't think there is good or evil here. We all fight for what we believe in. You gave it all and fought to the end for what you believed in, so you shouldn't have regrets, don't you think?"

"Yes, I totally agree... This fight... was really exciting... King of Fakers..."

With those last words, and a radiant smile on his face, the hero of the Trojan War vanished.

After I caugth my breath, I ran out of the ruined courtyard towards the explosions that marked the spot where Saber was fighting Lancer.

I had to hurry up. The shield would not last long now that its owner was gone, and with my low reserves of prana, projecting a copy would be impossible, especially being a shield.

With a little structural grasp, I could see that Rider of Red was right. This noble phantasm was the key to defeating the mighty hero of charity.

But on the way I stopped when I came across a familiar face. It was Astolfo, who was running in a direction perpendicular to mine.

We both observed the pitiful state the other was in, until he seemed to realize the implications of my being here.

"Archer, you defeated Rider of Red!?" Although this night was much more serious than usual, he approached me all excited. I could even see his eyes glow.

"I managed somehow. But there's no time for celebrations. I need to take this as quickly as possible to Saber. It's the only way to defeat Karna."

His gaze filled with seriousness again. He glanced at the shield and me before he spoke.

"All right, leave it to me!"

"Huh? Weren't you going to check on your master?"

"He's fine. I can feel it through our bond. More importantly, you must go and help Ruler stop Amakusa Shirou, so leave this to me."

Seeing your resolution, I couldn't refuse. "Fine. But remember, its true name is..."

* * *

Despite how tough the fight was, you could see a smile on Siegfried's face.

This was what the promise that he and Karna had made after their unfinished fight the day he and his master went to meet Ruler and try to win her favor. They'd both fight again, give it all up, and more importantly, enjoy it.

At first, Saber noticed that something was bothering Lancer. Something was preventing him from giving it all.

So he decided to stop the fight, and Lancer explained to him the situation of the former masters of the Red faction. In the end they agreed that Caules and Gordes, who had already managed to board the fortress, would go to rescue them, so that they could have their fight without worries.

The fight had remained even, despite Karna's generous use of flame prana burst. Saber had to squeeze his swordsmanship to the max to face him in equal terms, and yet, were it not for his defensive noble phantasm greatly reducing the damage he received, he would have been defeated in a matter of minutes.

His silver armor was already practically shattered, and he still couldn't harm Karna. The golden armor of this, Kavacha and Kundala, was truly indestructible.

According to estimates made by Archer after the first time they boarded the Hanging Gardens, all he could do was hold out until Lancer destroyed his armor so he could use the true name his spear.

Saying it was easier than doing it. As a servant, Siegfried's speed to deploy Balmung's power had been reduced considerably. Each use counted, so he had to maximize each one's efficiency.

The courtyard they were in had become a desolate land, and the fighting was just beginning. He had narrowly dodged one of Lancer's noble phantasms, which consisted of a powerful beam of fire fired from his eye, and now he was preparing to use another.

Karna was in the middle of the air after being rejected by Saber's attack. His golden spear wrapped itself in powerful flames as he prepared to throw it at his opponent.

Seeing the enormous accumulation of power, Siegfried did not think twice and turned the hilt of his greatsword. The power stored in the gemstone came out, enveloping the blade in a twilight aura.

"BRAHMASTRA KUNDALA!"

"BALMUNG!"

The spear turned into a flaming shell that could be compared to a nuclear bomb hit the huge wave of destruction. Both attacks were countered, causing a huge explosion that clouded the view of both opponents.

"It wasn't a winning move after all... !"

Karna's eyes opened in surprise as he saw the smoke and flames split in two, and his opponent shot out at him through that opening. That had been one of his strongest attacks, and it only took his opponent a few seconds to pull himself together.

He quickly brought his spear into his hands and blocked Siegfried's sword. The sheer force of the attack sent him to crash into the ground, and he slid several metres, leaving a ditch in his path.

Karna did not take long to rise as if nothing had happened. His usually calm expression had become serious.

"Praiseworthy. Through your sword I can see the spirit of someone who wants to protect something. It seems that this will not be enough to bring you down." He raised his spear above himself, and his body began to overflow with pure power. "Therefore, I need an attack that brings you absolute destruction!"

His golden armor broke, and with it also the seal that prevented his divine spear from showing its true power. It returned to its original appearance, with a bright reddish core and a huge black blade that measured easily one metre. The flames around Karna began to overflow in all directions, razing the area.

Siegfried reaffirmed his grip on the hilt of his sword. This was what he had been waiting for. If he could survive this attack, victory would be near. However, in his mind there was pure euphoria, seeing that his opponent was finally going to go all out.

"Hero Siegfried, out of respect for this worthy rival I have found in this second life, I will offer you my strongest and most powerful attack!"

"Then I will also go all out! So bring it on, Karna!"

On Karna's back four red blades unfolded, and a purple aura burst. With the ultimate attack almost loaded, he aimed the god Indra's huge spear at his opponent.

"Know the mercy of the King of the Gods!"

Siegfried turned the hilt of his sword again, and the true Eter of the age of the gods emerged. He kicked the ground and charged forward as he prepared to swing his noble phantasm upwards.

"The evil dragon shall fall!"

"With this one stroke, I shall inflict extinction!"

"And the world now will reach twilight!"

"Be reduced to ashes, VASAVI SHAKTI!" With that, the attack that was said to destroy everything in one blow was released.

"Fall, BALMUNG!" This time, instead of a wave of destruction, the great phantasmal sword fired a beam similar to that of Clarent Blood Arthur to match the anti-world noble phantasm.

Even so, even putting everything into that last attack, Siegfried could not match the enormous power of his opponent. Within seconds of the initial crash, Balmung began to back quickly.

But, Saber didn't give up, and he kept pouring all his prana into his sword. His determination gave his master enough time to make a decision.

Gordes, who was far from there, could see his servant fighting through his eyes. His gaze stood on the only command seal left in his hand.

He had wasted the other two command seals in the first battle against Rider of Red, but this time, he would give them a proper use. Saber was going to die if he didn't, so at least they would take the most powerful enemy servant with them.

"_Saber, by my command seal, I order you to defeat that flame bastard!"_

The huge amount of prana of the command seal came to Siegfried, along with the determination of his master.

He could not help but smile despite the peculiar way in which the blond magus referred to his rival.

"HAAAAAAAAAAHHH!"

He quickly pushed the whole prana to the sword. The twilight beam grew several times in size and even the balance in the clash of power.

It was not enough to overcome the true name of Karna's spear, but now it was no longer a one-sided power struggle, but a fight of wills. And even in that regard, both showed an enormous amount of determination, equalizing.

They were in a stalemate, in which will lose who run out prana before. And Siegfried at a disadvantage with his contract with his master already ended, and would soon fade away.

"Still it was not enough, huh?"

"Don't give up! The help is already here!"

A voice that he soon recognized surprised him. He turned to see Astolfo recklessly plunging between the two attacks.

Just seconds before he was completely obliterated, he shouted the true name of the shield in his hands. The one he had received from Archer, who in turn received it from Rider of Red as a parting gift.

"AKHILLEUS KOSMOS!"

The bounded field of the noble phantasm expanded, deploying the miniature replica of the world in which Achilles lived, and receiving the god slayer attack.

"That's... a different world." Karna couldn't help gasping as his attack impacted and destroyed the miniature world.

"Go, Saber!"

Siegfried did not need to be told. With his body beginning to collapse and fade, he quickly jumped towards his opponent.

He swung Balmung, releasing the remaining power from the blade and cutting everything in front of him. Karna brought his spear, which had returned to its former form, before him, blocking the attack and falling back to the ground.

Siegfried threw his blade towards his opponent's chest as a seemingly desperate last attack, but Lancer easily deflected it.

They both stood on either side of the sword, and jumped at the same time towards it. The match would be decided on whether Saber would recover his blade in time, or would be pierced by Lancer's flaming spear before.

But there was one thing Karna didn't count on, and that was that Saber had one last ace up his sleeve.

"What!?"

A simple-looking scythe materialized in his hand. It was a projected copy of the Harpe's prototype that Archer had given him as a last resort.

Karna could sense the anti-immortal nature of the weapon, but it was already too late. Having propelled himself with his prana burst, he could no longer slow down.

The crescent-shaped blade pierced his spiritual core mercilessly, causing a fatal and incurable wound, while the Achilles' noble phantasm finished exploding in the background.

"Not even that... was enough to defeat you..." Karna managed to talk as he vanished.

"Well... I couldn't defeat you alone... I must apologize for letting someone else... interfere in our fight..."

"No. You did your duty... as a servant to the end... Besides, this Holy Grail War... is a battle between factions... It's normal... for you to have the support of your allies..."

"What matter is that you both enjoyed it and are satisfied, right?" They both turned to look at Astolfo approaching them.

"Yeah... I had my promised fight... and I was able to save my master... I can depart... without regrets..." Karna was the first to return to the throne of heroes.

Siegfried followed shortly after, but before that, he said goodbye to Rider. "I guess this is goodbye... Take care of the boy, Astolfo..."

"Goodbye, Hero of Charity, Drangon-Blooded Knight. You can leave that to me."

Having remained alone, Rider ran to where he felt his master was. He wanted to see how all this ended, and surely Sieg too.

* * *

**And that's all for now. What do you think? I really tried to make the fights the most epic possible. The first part of the fight between King of Fakers and Achilles, specifically the strategy of the five Hruntings, is a reference to the decisive battle in Hollow Ataraxia. The second part is a reference to the fight between Rider and Saber on Fate's route, and the third is a reference to _Sparks Liner High_.**

**Yeah, what beat Achilles wasn't the Unlimited Blade Works, or spamming anti-immortal weapons at him like Gilgamesh would. It was the Triple-Linked Crane Wings, the emblematic technique of Archer with Kanshou and Bakuya, and which unfortunately has not come out in any anime. And no, I don't count what was seen in the first Fate anime of Deen Studio. For me, the original and most epic Triple-Linked Crane Wings is the one Shirou uses in _Sparks Liner High_.**

**But, leaving the captain references mode, in the next chapter you will see at last the fight between Amakusa Shirou and King of Fakers, and as you might expect, the last bonding moment with Jeanne. As for the fight between Mordred and Semiramis, I don't know whether to include it. I mean, the fact that Mordred now sees her 'father' otherwise doesn't have much influence on the fight itself. I'd like to know if you want to read it even if it doesn't change much from the original, or if you want me to focus on the final fight.**

**And finally, as always, any constructive review is welcome, as follow and fav motivate me to continue writing. So as not to keep you waiting too long, my next update will be the end of this story. After that, as I begin to plan the crossover with FGO, I will update my other story, which seems that the previous chapter quite liked.**

**With this, I bid you farewell for now. We will see each other at the conclusion of this story.**


	8. Epiloque: hopes and dreams

**See you again, people! Here I bring you the expected conclusion of this story. At first I didn't think this would be so long, but in the end it ended up being almost as long as the previous chapter. In the end I decided not to include the fight between Mordred and Semiramis, as this would lengthen further, and I didn't want to reopen the wound either.**

**And this time yes, as I always say at the end of my stories, the Emiya theme can not miss.**

**Without further ado, let the final battle between dreams begin.**

**Disclaimer I don't own any right over Type-Moon or the Fate franchise.**

* * *

Amakusa Shirou saw hell.

After entering the Great Grail, he was received with the image of that hell in which he found himself at the end of his life. Hara Castle reduced to ashes and rubble, and his fellow rebels massacred by the Shogunate's army.

"I heard the people's lament..."

And in the middle of that hell, he found himself. Her past self that still kept his black hair and fair skin, bloodied and kneeling in the middle of hell.

"And so, I answered their prayers."

"But, what I looked for was a mistake. Perhaps, fighting to help those voices who asked for help was not the right choice. But my self at the time chose to fight alongside everyone else."

"And that's how it ended. I couldn't save anything." The response from his other self came in strong, and full of regret.

However, Shirou's calmed expression did not falter. "It was painful and frustrating."

"I hate my enemies! Yet, they are still human. That's why I can forgive them. But I can't forgive myself!"

"True... I can't be forgiven as I couldn't save a single person. That is why I wished it. A miracle for humanity to discard its selfishness. The salvation of humanity. Be it allies or enemies... I swore to save all humans."

Amakusa Shirou knew what this was about. The Grail was testing him to see if he was worthy to use it, so he showed it his resolve.

Just then, he saw another figure walking through hell. A man of tanned skin, white hair and steel grey eyes, dressed in a light black and silver armor, and a red cloak.

Shirou quickly recognized the man he had declared as his enemy, King of Fakers. He was walking aimlessly through the rubble, with a flat, emotionless look.

The sight caused anger to arise in the heart of the ex-saint.

That man pursued ideals similar to him, and even, unlike Shirou, he had managed to save everyone. But instead of cooperating with him to bestow the miracle of the salvation of mankind, he rejected him. He rejected the dream he had spent sixty years planning to achieve, saying that he had given up and entrusted it to the Holy Grail.

But, Shirou knew that was what the Grail wanted. His determination to save even that man to falter.

He pushed those turbulent emotions aside and closed his eyes to achieve a state of peace of mind. If he wanted humanity to give up those unnecessary feelings, he himself would have to be the first.

When he opened his eyes again, the image of that hell had disappeared, and now he was in a beautiful meadow full of flowers, covered by a clear blue sky.

And in front of him, there was a beautiful woman with pale skin, red eyes, and snow-white hair. She was wearing a white and red ceremonial dress with a matching crown, and she was looking at him with a cold, emotionless look.

He recognized her quickly. She was Justeaze Lizrich von Einzbern, the head of the Einzbern family when they created the Grail together with the Tohsaka and Makiri, and the woman on whom the Homunculi that family created were based. As was his former master.

"That kind of agony is no longer necessary. What I want is the materialization of the souls of all humans. I will not take no for an answer."

The woman simply nodded. _Now, humanity would be saved_.

* * *

Jeanne finally reached the chamber where the Great Grail was. It was a large room full of pillars, and hanging between them was the great mass of carved stone that was the Great Grail.

There was no sign of Shirou at the scene, so she assumed he was still inside. Knowing that Assassin of Red was currently fighting in the throne room against Saber of Red, the only presence she felt in the place must be...

"Caster, Shakespeare."

"Indeed, I am William Shakespeare, a humble playwright at your service." Said servant came out from behind one of the columns and approached Ruler carelessly.

"I suggest you surrend. You have no chance of defeating me."

"But please, we haven't even started yet!" The book in Caster's hands opened and its pages began to flutter around both of them.

"Curtains open! Go back to your seats. No smoking, photograph or recording. The whole world is my stage! The play begins! Let the thunder of applause roar!"

Once Caster finished her speech, Jeanne found herself dressed in common clothes of her time, and in the midst of a rural landscape she recognized.

"This is my home..."

It was the place where she was born, and where she had lived until she decided to take her banner and go to war.

"An illusion. Surely this is the noble phantasm of Caster of Red."

"Why? Why burn you on the stake and despise you for 18 years? Even if the Lord's guidance urged you to leave."

A familiar voice took her out of your thoughts. She immediately turned in the direction it came from, and saw a woman who was practically a more adult version of her. Jeanne recognized that person immediately.

"Mother?"

"Please don't go Jeanne!" The woman clung to her desperately.

Still Jeanne was impassive. "No, I'm going. I have to go. Not only to save this village or the country, but much more."

"Ah, Jeanne!" Her mother buried her face in her chest and began to cry totally desvastated.

Ruler simply turned his gaze to the other person present. "Are you satisfied with this, Caster of Red?"

"How could I? This is just the beginning! Now, let's go to the second scene."

The writer snapped his fingers, and the next moment the landscape had radically changed.

Now they were in the middle of a bloody battlefield. Jeanne recognized it as one of the many she had been on. She found herself surrounded by the corpses of soldiers killed and massacred by the army she led.

"You're covered in blood, Saint."

"It doesn't matter what you show me. The people who followed me got blood on their hands. That makes mine bloody, too. I've never been afraid of that."

"Then let me ask you in place of Carlos VII!" Shakespeare began to speak to her through the bodies around her.

"You went down to the battlefield, risking your life, bloodied your hands and won back to France. But in the end you were put on the stake. A terrible betrayal, if you ask me. A tragedy! Despair! You still say you believe in God? That your fight was not meaningless?"

Jeanne's answer came without hesitation. "Of course, my death was a fate I never tried to avoid. The moment I raised my banner, I lost the right to die peacefully at home."

After her response, the scene suddenly changed again. This time, she was walking through the streets of a city she soon recognized.

Her hands were restrained by shackles that were tied to a horse in front of her. It was the same scene as when she was walking towards the stake in which she was to be burned as a witch.

"How disgusting."

The horse rider turned to look at her and lifted the visor off his helmet, revealing that it was Caster.

"Excuse me, blame the costume designer."

"Huh?"

"The character to be executed is already on the stage!"

Jeanne's eyes opened in horror as she saw the stage in the middle of the square. Unlike how she remembered it, on top of this was not a stake prepared to burn someone, but a gallows.

And there on top, among several soldiers, with hands tied and rope around his neck, was Archer. He had his usual stoic expression, without any regrets or resentment towards his executioners, and with his gaze fixed on the horizon.

"What are you doing!? Stop!" Jeanne ran to them in an attempt to stop them, but the chain that tied her hands prevented her.

"You mustn't touch the actors!"

Ruler did not listen to him. The only thought that filled her mind was that this was a mistake. They were going to execute Archer, the person who devoted his whole life to making others happy without receiving anything in return.

"Stop! Please stop! Why are you going to execute him and not me!?"

Her words fell on deaf ears. Finally, the trap door at Archer's feet opened and he fell. The rope tightened to the max, and with an unpleasant sound, broke Archer's neck. His death was quick, painless, and with any struggle from him.

"Why...?" Jeanne looked at the scene with a mixture of horror and shock. Above all, for the smile she saw on Archer's face just before his death.

That was a real smile, the one he always put on when he got someone happier. Surely, he died without blaming anyone else, thinking that if he died, no one else would have to. That she wouldn't have to.

"Oh? But you're the one doing this."

What Caster said made Jeanne even more confused. "What?"

"My noble phantasm uses your own memories. So it's not that I did this, but you did it yourself!"

"No! I never!"

"Ah, but I must admit that this tragedy is really plausible. He would have sacrificed himself so you wouldn't die if he'd been there at the time, don't you think?"

There was no response from Jeanne. She knew he was right. If it was so that others could be happy, Archer would happily give his life.

"But, this isn't over. Now, let's go to the last act."

When Jeanne opened her eyes, this time she was not in a landscape she had seen during her life, but in one she had seen a few days ago.

A barren hill where life did not grow, and an orange sunset sky, covered by a mist of rust. And swords. Many of them, of all sizes and aspects, but all rusted and stabbed to the floor like graves.

This was undoubtedly the Unlimited Blade Works, Archer's reality marble, and the manifestation of his inner world.

"This is really an interesting landscape you saw, Ruler. I would have loved to see it in person. Every little detail has an immense meaning behind it. Forgive me if I couldn't recreate it completely."

Jeanne recovered from the previous shock and stared at Caster. "Well? What are you going to show me now? I doubt you can keep me inside your noble phantasm much longer."

"See by yourself. I can say with confidence that this is one of the greatest tragedies you'll ever see."

Ruler looked to where Caster pointed, which turned out to be the top of the hill. At that moment, she understood what he meant by that he couldn't recreate it completely.

During the battle with Caster of Black, though the view of the Unlimited Blade Works landscape had overwhelmed her, what lay at the top of the hill had not gone unnoticed for her.

Unlike the rest of the hill, the summit was covered with green grass full of life, and on its center was the only sword that was not rusted. As Archer had described it, the light he found at the end of his path, and the representation of the miracle he achieved.

However, in this replica that Shakespeare had created, the nameless sword of the promised salvation was not where it should be. Instead, the top of the hill of swords was as arid as the rest of the place.

And what struck her the most was what she saw there. There was the owner of this world, kneeling with his back to them. And on his back, there were several swords stabbed. His own swords.

"Caster, what is this supposed to be?"

"You should already know. You're the one who didit after all. This is basically what would have happened to that man if he hadn't found that light at the end of his life. Betrayed by the very people he swore to save and make happy, and by the ideals he believed all his life! All he did was die alone and full of regret on a hill of swords. And there's more!"

After Caster said that, Archer stood up. A sword appeared in his hand, and then he stabbed it on the ground.

Just at that moment, an image appeared in Jeanne's mind. It was a road in the middle of a desert. In this one you could see what looked like a convoy made up of several off-road vehicles.

And the people who handled them or rode them were all dead. Their bodies were scattered around the place, all of them pierced with twisted swords. The same ones that Archer usually shoots with his bow.

Archer stabbed another sword to the ground, and another image appeared in Jeanne's mind. This time, it was a ruined city, and again, all I could see were corpses, all of them also pierced by twisted swords.

The scenes kept repeating, and at all times, Archer's face remained the same. A shell without emotions, and his eyes devoided of any trace of life. He seemed a machine just doing its assigned task.

It didn't take Jeanne long to interpret what she was seeing. "This is... what would have happened to him if he hadn't made that wish..."

"Indeed, Ruler! A never-ending cycle of killing, in which each time he ends up destroying his own ideals! Continually killing people without distinguishing whether they are innocent or not, moving further and further away from his ever-distant dream! In the end, he became an emotionless tool, a sword in the service of humanity."

As if to represent what Shakespeare said, several gigantic rusty gears appeared in the sky and slowly began to spin between them. It was the representation in this world that its owner finally ended up seeing himself as a machine.

"This... can't be... He doesn't deserve something like this..." Jeanne couldn't take it anymore and closed her eyes to avoid seeing them.

"Oh? Is that so? As a follower of the Lord's teachings, you must treat everyone equally. Why do you make an exception with him?"

"No! I..."

"That exception is certainly love! A powerful feeling for that man!"

"No! I have neither the right nor the will to love someone as an individual. That must be..."

Jeanne left her line inconcluse. She didn't know what her feelings for Archer were. Even if she knew the only way Archer didn't end up like this was if someone loved him, she doubted that she herself deserved to be that person.

_"No! You're wrong, Lady Jeanne! You're wrong!"_ The voice of Laeticia, the human she was possessing because the vessel of the Ruler class was already occupied by Amakusa Shirou, was heard within her.

But, it didn't reach Jeanne.

"It is exactly as you say. You are indeed a saint, Jeanne. Of course you don't have those feelings. You love humanity as a whole. You would never love one person over the others. Isn't that obvious? You let him end like this! You sure knew if he went down that path, he'd end up regretting it, but you didn't do anything!"

Shakespeare's words, struck Jeanne's heart hard. "I didn't..."

"He willingly assumed the entire burden and killed Assassin for you, taking one more step towards this sad and heartbreaking end. If you love him so much, why didn't you stop him?"

Jeanne fell to her knees, her mind a bundle of doubts. What Caster said was undoubtedly true. Being the person his dream was to sabe everyone, he must have been the most affected by having to kill the children. She knew it, and yet she didn't do anything.

_"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I should have told you clearly! Your heart was right!"_

The sad and depressing landscape faded, and both servants found themselves again in the Great Grail room.

"I guess my time is up. Maintaining a replica of a reality marble is really expensive. I couldn't even bring the special guest, so I had to manage to interpret it convincingly. Anyway..."

Caster stopped talking to himself and headed for the mentally devastated Ruler. "This is my great victory, Jeanne d'Arc. In the end, you are but a Young girl. You lost because you could not realice and accept your own feelings, and that is what I call being dense. But enough of this buffoonery!"

Shakespeare glanced at his pocket watch, and after checking what he wanted, he threw it aside.

"It is time for the two protagonists of this story to enter the stage for the final battle! First, with all of you, my master, Amakusa Shirou Tokisada! The man who has just set in motion the salvation of mankind!"

Both servants watched as the Holy Grail began to shine. Stairs made of prana appeared to connect the front of this with the ground, and on high appeared the master of the servants of the red faction.

He no longer wore his priest's clothes, but his traditional clothes with which he was summoned in the Third Holy Grail War, and wielded his Katana enchanted by Caster, Miike Tenta Mitsuyo.

With a conviction-filled gaze, he raised his free hand. "My desire was granted! It was indeed granted! This is the victory of humanity!"

His gaze then landed on Ruler, who looked at him with virtually no will to fight.

"Jeanne d'Darc, the Third Magic has been set in motion."

"Third Magic? The materialization of the soul..."

"Now, the Hanging Gardens will travel the world absorbing the magical energy of all souls. This is for the purpose of freeing humanity from their physical bodies. The instinct to survive will disappear. Selfishness will vanish. Humanity will ascend to beings with mental bodies. Normal people will attain immortality without discarding emotions like love. I have a question for you. What is that if not salvation?"

Jeanne's eyes were opened to it. What he said was correct, and in the state of mind she was in, he no longer knew what to answer.

But what she missed was that it seemed like he had asked the question for someone else.

"I don't know about her, but I think it's stupid."

A low voice was heard behind Ruler. She immediately turned to face the entrance of the hall. There, at the top of the stone stairs was Archer. His hair usually combed backwards now fell on the part of his red cloak tied to his head. His combat suit was in tatters and his body was full of wounds.

At that moment, she remembered the revelation she had the day they met. The one where Amakusa Shirou and Archer were fighting, and Archer was about to be defeated. Then, she realized that the pitiful state in which he was in the vision was not caused by that fight.

He was about to start fighting in that state.

"And with all of you, here we have the other protagonist, whose presence here can only mean that he managed to defeat a hero of the caliber of Achilles! King of Fakers, the nameless hero who opposes the miracle of the salvation of mankind."

"As I expected, you finally made it here, King of Fakers. Could you tell me why you find the miracle of humanity's salvation stupid?"

Both white-haired men slowly began to descend their respective stairs as they spoke. Though their glances were so intense, their expresions remained calm.

"Well, I can see that with that method that hell will not happen again. However, you forgot one crucial aspect. Do you really think people will be happy like that?"

"Of course. There will no longer be evil in people's hearts. People can love without being hurt. There will be no more sins, and everyone can be atonned."

"Well, I'm not someone who can talk about something like love, but I can tell you that you're wrong about the other aspects."

Shirou kept calm despite Archer's claim. "And why would that be?"

"When one remembers his past, one does not think of how many years he has lived, but of the good times he has lived. People enjoy their lives to the fullest every day because they know that someday it will all be over. Being immortal and carefree, do you think that's possible?"

The only answer Archer got was silence. They both just walked down the stairs and started walking towards each other.

"No more talking, huh? I guess this was inevitable."

Archer walked past Caster and Ruler. The first one turned aside and went to one side of the room saying he was going to pick a good spot to see the resolution of this story.

As for Jeanne, she stared at him not knowing what to say. "Archer..."

He softly touched her shoulder. "Stay back, Ruler. I'll take care of this."

Jeanne looked at Archer's back as he continued to walk toward Shirou. That firm, sturdy back that seemed to be able to carry the weight of the world.

It was the same image she saw when he dealt alone with Spartacus' final attack. The same image she saw when he took on all the consequences for himself and murdered Assassin of Black.

The same situation repeated constantly. Archer would fight alone again, even if he was all hurt and with barely any magic energy, just because he doesn't think he deserves to be helped.

Jeanne couldn't take it anymore. Even if she no longer knew if the miracle that set in motion Amakusa Shirou was right or not, and she was no longer going to love everyone else equally, at that moment, there was only one thought filling her head.

She didn't want to see that man all alone anymore, making others happy without being able to be just as happy in return.

Pressing her grip on the handle of her banner, she mustered the courage to rise up once more.

"Wait, Archer! You're not alone anymore, so stop doing everything on your own and let me help you!"

"No. You're wrong." The resounding response came not only from Archer, but also from Shirou.

"Huh?" That surprised her a lot.

"This isn't about me wanting to take care of this so no one else has to fight, Jeanne. This is something personal between him and me that we have to solve alone. Just as he doesn't accept my dream, I don't accept his."

"Yeah. We will decide which of our selfish dreams triumphs in this fight. It is a good end to this Holy Grail War. But do you think you can defeat me in that state, King of Fakers? If Jeanne d'Arc wants to help you, I don't mind facing both of you. After all, if she opposes my wish, after destroying you she will be next."

"I won't know until I try. Besides, coming from the guy who had to be summoned in the Ruler class to fight other servants, you don't sound very convincing."

They both remained silent, ten meters separating each other. Both had their eyes fixed on the other, totally calm and without any trace of hatred for the adversary.

"Trace, on."

While Shirou drew his katana, Archer projected Kanshou and Bakuya into his hands.

Considering the prana he spent to destroy all the traps he found on his way here, that would be the last projection he could make.

After a few brief seconds of silence, they both kicked the ground and threw themselves at each other. The yang sword clashed into the katana of a certain one-eyed master swordsman in a rain of sparks.

The final fight that would decide the fate of mankind had begun, with Jeanne and Shakespeare as the only witnesses.

The fight began even. They both had similar parameters, and they could also reinforce his body, although Archer was much more skilled at this. However, in terms of sword skills, Archer far surpassed Shirou, and the same could be said in the combat experience.

But a few minutes later, the difference began to be noticed.

Amakusa Shirou threw a thrust to the left of Archer's chest. He brought Kanshou quickly to deflect the attack with a backhand swing.

His timing had been perfect, and the attack should have been avoided without receiving any damage. But that would have been the case if the nameless servant had been in full condition.

The fatigue accumulated in the fight against Achilles began to make a dent, and his movement was a little slower than usual. It was barely perceptible, but it made a difference.

"Guh!"

The katana was not deflected in time and ended up leaving a cut on Archer's side, adding one more wound to all he had. It wasn't a serious wound, but in the state he was in it was troubling.

However, Archer endured the pain and struck back before Shirou could bring back his sword. He swung Bakuya quickly towards his opponent's exposed neck.

But, again, the movement was slightly slower than normal, giving Amakusa Shirou the opportunity to lean back and let the married sword pass within inches of his nose.

Archer continued his attack, his right leg kick hard the left side of the former servant Ruler. This one flew to the side and rolled a couple of times to get back on his feet.

His opponent threw himself back at him, his speed reduced compared to the first clash. Amakusa took advantage of this and took out five Black Keys in his left hand and threw them at Archer.

He did not bother to slow dawn, and with a wide swing with Kanshou he deflected them all behind him.

But this was already part of Shirou's plans.

"Set!"

The enchantment in the hilts of the weapons to exorcise evil spirits was activated, and the three blades changed their trajectory in the middle of the air to fly towards Archer's back.

He realized it, but he could not turn to stop them as it would mean turning his back on his enemy. Nor could he trace a copy to counter them, so all he could do was to jump aside and abandon his attack.

Still, his body didn't respond as quickly as his mind did, and one of the Black Keys managed to stab itself in the left side of his back.

"Archer!" Jeanne's worry-filled scream was heard in the background, but they both ignored it.

Archer landed as best he could, but he didn't have time to regroup. Amakusa had already crossed the distance between them and his blade was heading in a thrust aimed at his head.

Archer dropped all the weight on his wounded side, causing his body to lean by itself to the left side. He barely managed to avoid the attack, rubbing his temple and cutting his bandana.

As the red cloak fell to the ground, Archer quickly returned to balance and struck the blade that had almost killed him upwards with Bakuya. That left Amakusa's chest wide open, and without missing the opportunity, Archer threw him a backhand cut with Kanshou.

Shirou reacted quickly and jumped back, receiving only a superficial cut. If Archer had been in full swing, he would surely have been cut in two.

Both took advantage of the distance between the two to regroup and reassess the situation.

While Amakusa Shirou was almost unharmed and showed no signs of fatigue, Archer was just the opposite. His breathing began to become difficult, as he drew the sword from his back with a grimace.

There was no doubt that he was already reaching his limit.

At that moment, everyone's eyes, including his own, landed on Archer's body. It was not surprising, as the view was unique and uncomfortable.

Swords sprouted through all the visible wounds on his body, sewing and pluging them. And from the face Archer was making, it wasn't painless.

You could say now that his body was made out of swords.

Archer had tried to delay this, as being a servant the loss of blood was not a very serious problem, and the swords could hinder even more his movements.

If he had any prana left, this would help him to heal the wounds more quickly, but he had hardly any prana left to maintain his existence on the physical plane, and if it weren't for his Archer class ability, independent action, it wouldn't even be enough for that.

And seeing the little prana that came to him from Fiore, she must also be almost on the verge of the insufficiency of prana. It wouldn't be weird if she'd already fallen unconscious from fatigue.

The fight resumed shortly after, but, that could hardly be called a fight from that point on.

Archer could barely defend himself against Amakusa Shirou's attacks. He had practically no strength left to fight back. Although he had managed to adjust to his unfortunate condition, his combat experience only made him survive longer.

Every attack of his katana that parried made him fall to the ground, but he got up and kept trying. Without giving up, he continued to fight that hopeless fight.

"Realize now, King of Fakers! You have no chance!"

Amakusa Shirou's sword overcame Archer's defense and made a pretty deep cut in his chest. Archer spit out a handful of blood, but stood up to his enemy again.

"Give up already! You alone can do nothing!"

Another cut, this time on his thigh, that practically showed the bone. But his opponent did not give up.

"Your dream is impossible! You cannot get it on your own! Accept my miracle and put aside that unreal illusion of yours!"

The katana this time stabbed Archer's abdomen. A really serious wound, but he stood up, facing him without hesitation, even though he looked like a walking corpse.

"Even if my miracle will not make humanity happy, there will be no more suffering! Wasn't that what you wanted? You're only opposing me because of your selfishness! You want to make everyone else happy because it's your only way to be happy! With such shallow, hypocritical motives, you never stood a chance against me!"

Amakusa Shirou raised his katana above his head to strike the final blow. His arms shone with black and white, indicating the activation of his noble phantasm. The crystallization of all the 'miracles' he performed during his lifetime, which allow him to perform any existing magecraft.

The katana was flooded with prana. The spell used by the Japanese servant was the one Archer used to try to match Achilles, prana burst.

The sword descended upon Archer, bringing certain death. He crossed the married swords over his head and received the attack directly.

Kanshou broke in the crash, and Bakuya barely resisted. The sheer force of the attack sent the nameless servant to collide with one of the pillars. Blood splattered on the debris created by the stunted crash, and Archer sat there and didn't get up again. His bangs covered his eyes, and the white sword in his hand was beginning to fade.

"This is my victory, King of Fakers. The miracle of the salvation of mankind has triumphed."

Jeanne looked down and speechless as the man she admired had been completely defeated, and his dream crushed.

At the time, Archer's mind was about to give up, but his body, for some reason, denied it with all its might. It kept telling him that that man was wrong.

He wondered why he had been defeated. Was it because Amakusa's words?

Of course not. All Shirou said were things he already knew from the beginning, so it could be said that they went in one ear and out the other.

It had to be something else. Something his opponent did and he didn't.

Analyzing his last line, he realized what it was. Unlike him, who had focused on defeating the enemy before him, Amakusa Shirou fought to defeat his enemy's dream.

Once again, he had lost sight of his true purpose. King of Fakers, and all his companions, had come here to save everyone, not to defeat Amakusa Shirou. That was just a stepping stone to his dream.

Besides, he really got on his nerves. He really couldn't accept that man.

If parts of his body were broken, then he just had to use the parts that weren't. And if everything he had was broken, then he would use parts he didn't have. His body hadn't given up yet, so he could definitely reach it.

* * *

The applause rang in the hall as Shakespeare approached them again, with an ecstatic expression.

"Wonderful! What a battle brimming with emotion and tragedy! The play has finally come to its conclusion, and the victory was for my master! Ah, but it seems that some spontaneous actors are approaching."

"Resist, Archer! We'll take this from here!"

Astolfo entered the room mounted on his hypogriff, accompanied by Sieg and Caules. The pair of servant and master remained in a rather pitiful state, but it seemed that the former master of Berserker had helped them to recover a little.

But, before they could head for Amakusa Shirou, prana chains caught the hypogriff and its rider. Caules and Sieg managed to jump just before and landed near Jeanne.

"Tsk. This is nothing!" Astolfo tried to break out of the bindings, but he was too weakened.

"Master! Quick, give me the order!"

Near them appeared Semiramis, who had caught Rider. The battle with Mordred had left her in a deplorable state, without her left arm and a horrible cut on her chest. Still, she had drawn strength to return to her master and support him to the end.

He wasted no time and raised his hand with his command seals. "Assassin, by my command seal, I order you to bind Rider of Black!"

The effect was immediate and the chains strengthened, leaving the Charlemagne paladin completely immobilized.

Seeing the situation, Sieg looked at the two remaining black command seals in his hand. He barely managed to be able to move a few moments ago, but it was their only chance to win against Amakusa Shirou.

"Ruler, I'm going to transform. If the two of us fight together, we can beat him."

She nodded and stood up. Her hand was placed on the hilt of her sword, the sword she had never wielded on the battlefield. At this point, she didn't mind sacrificing herself so Archer's defeat wouldn't be meaningless. However...

"Hold on, stay out of this... This is not yet finished..."

An unexpected voice interrupted them. The eyes of all present turned to Archer, who was slowly rising.

"OH! It seems the show is not yet over! King of Fakers still has more to offer!" Caster's comments were ignored by everyone in the room.

"Are you still going to challenge me, King of Fakers? Give up now, it's impossible that you can defeat me-"

"Shut up damnit!" Archer's scream silenced everyone here, mostly because of how surprising it was.

"You keep repeating those meaningless words... Impossible... That's just a term created by people who gave up like you to complace hemselves!"

The grip of his hand on the White married sword hilt was reaffirmed, and it regained its image.

_"I am the bone of my sword."_

He muttered the first line of his aria, the poem describing him as a person and the response to which he came after living his whole life as a sword. It had no visible effect because of the little prana he had left, but it served to remind himself of his true goal.

He poured sheer determination into his dying body and finished rising. He swallowed the blood that had accumulated in his throat, and his bangs withdrew from his eyes, revealing a sight full of nothing but determination.

"I don't mind losing to someone else because of my weakness... but... I'll never give up!"

Archer kicked the ground and rushed at Amakusa Shirou swinging the married sword. This one easily saw the attack coming and stopped him with his katana. The sound of the clash between swords announced the restart of the fight.

It is an unbelievable technique. His attacking body is on the verge of death. His fingers are broken, his limbs are slashed, and his breathing has stopped without him even realizing it. His speed is nothing, and his attack is mediocre.

The man who has trained and honed to the limit his abilities to face opponents much superior to him, has returned to fight him without them.

An unskilled, frantic attack . But still... This blow is heavier than any that came before.

"Wh...at?" Amakusa Shirou's calm, indifferent expression turns into surprise in less than a second.

The swinging swords are crazy. They clash with his katana with unimaginable speed.

Where is their power coming from? The attacks are no longer like before.

"You...!"

Shirou cannot go into defense. The next attack should cut through the man's neck. Realizing that he could no longer can make light o fArcher despite his current state, he swings his enchanted sword.

Up and down, left and right. The four attacks should be enough to cut off his limbs and cut up his body into pieces-

But, the only thing heard in the room was four steel clashes.

The man blocked them. No, exceeding his four attacks, the Yin sword comes to cut his throat.

Bringing back the katana, Amakusa Shirou parries the attack.

He intuitively knows that he will be killed if he does not attack. The katana attacks the enemy that is on the verge of death, and the man swings his sword frantically.

His swords clash in balance. Space is full of sparks, and anything that enters the space should be cut to pieces.

But that should be the last spark a dying man gives off.

Archer loses his breath every time he attacks, almost falls down, holds his ground, and attacks again.

The sight reassures him. There is no power left in his enemy. The man in front of him is literally on the verge of death. So...

So why do those arms have seemingly infinite power?

Archer has no consciussnes. He can no longer say what his enemy is doing, or whether his attacks are doing anything.

The immense pain that he feels, not only for his wounds, but also for the swords that sew them together, which when moving frantically tear him even more, orders his body to stop.

He suppress them all together by force.

"... isn't..." That's all that fills his head.

His ideal is fake, a mere fantasy that he had when he saw the smile of that man when he was saved. His motives were selfish, and the path he followed led him to a lonely death.

"It isn't...!" But he felt beauty in it.

He know it's just hypocrisy to value everyone else over himself. But still, from the beginning, he admired it, thinking how great it will be to live that way.

That's the only thing driving his dying body.

Amakusa Shirou cannot hear what his enemy is saying. His enemy's voice is weak, yet his attacks are relentless.

Looking, the man's hands are one with the hilt of the sword. It must be to keep the sword in place, but that will transfer the impact directly to his body.

The man is practically a swords mess covered in blood, and he will fall forward and die if he retreats. Even swinging the sword should come with great pain.

He blocks it in annoyance. His dying enemy gets on his nerve, but...

He himself gets on his nerves, because even though he knows it'll be all over when he retreats, he's not able to do so.

But how can he retreat?

Straightfoward attacks without strategy. If it is a shame to turn his back on such attacks, it is also a disgrace not to block them.

His enemy will self-destruct once he retreats. But he has a presentiment that he will lose something important if he does so.

The worries will end soon. His enemy is at his limit. He will fall after two more blows, or three at least.

"Damn..." Shirou clucks his tongue at his stupid thought.

He previously thought that his enemy would last two more blows. But he has received more than ten blows since then. The man will not fall.

"...….!"

He cannot hear Archer's voice. The dying man frantically opposes the obstacle in front of him.

That figure... He observes the figure with his own eyes for the first time.

Archer keep swing his sword with arms that are about to tear off. The only thing he has left is this one thing he's saying with all his might.

"...isn't..." His barrage of attacks make up for that scream.

There were people who could not save others, and there was he who could not save them. He swore to himself never let such a thing happen again, seeing the memories that meaninglessly disappeared.

"It isn't...!"

How long has been since then? There were things he lost, and there were things he dropped. There are always things that will be forgotten. So he swore to himself that he would not forget that one fact.

To become a hero who can save them all, so that everyone can be happy.

He will protect that, even if his reasons are selfish and hypocritical, and even if it is only sophistry to soften the guilt. That has to come true...

That was the oath he took that night of the full moon. He believes in that desire, even if everyone disagrees with it.

And so... Amakusa Shirou realizes that the attacks will not end.

His enemy will not stop. He will not stop from his own will. The man is attacking with all his might, but he's not looking at his opponent.

What Archer is trying to defeat is his obstacle, the miracle that is hindering him from reaching his dream. He is swinging his sword to enforce what he has believed in, and what he will keep on believing in.

Realizing this, he clenches his teeth in annoyance. The man continues to challenging it, opposing the miracle of salvation that he offered to humanity after sixty years of effort and preparation.

He really can't accept him. So why...?

Why does he want to see how long the man can continue?

"This is it, Disappear!"

He raises his katana. The attacks of his enemy are something he must take seriously. His arms once again shine, and the spell known as prana burst is reproduced on his sword. He repels his enemy's attacks and crushes his skull for sure.

A clanguing sound. The fatal attack is easily diverted. The one who had not been able to block that attack before, now repels a swing done with all his might.

Shirou gasps. He sees his enemy repel his enchanted sword and get back to stance. The man's eyes are looking straight at-

The impact causes one of Archer's arms and legs to break. His sense of pain hasn't gone numb. He uses his anger to suppress the pain that almost makes him faint.

That isn't important. Swords will do the function of broken bones and will keep the limbs firm and still usable.

What is important is that the left side of the enemy's chest is open. With half his body broken, and his independent action skill reaching its limit, that would be his final blow.

But such thoughts didn't fill his head. The only thing in his head was...

Amakusa Shirou pulls back his katana to protect his open left side. He will make it. He will easily make it.

"It isn't a mistake!" This is Archer's final attack.

That's the only thing that fills his head. Even if he is a fake, this is absolutely true. For everyone to be happy... That's an ideal everyone thinks of.

So he won't back down. Because this dream is...

The unwavering gaze. Faults and lies, shaking off everything, running without stoping.

"My dream is not a mistake!"

Those words are driven into his chest. An attack made at full strength, defense that should have been fast enough...

The battle is decided quickly.

He hears the sound of the blade piercing his heart.

The surprised one is the man dressed in traditional Japanese clothes. His enemy attacked full of determination to defeat him. Then it is natural for his attack to do so. The man does not need to be surprised, nor does he have anything to spare to be surprised.

That's why Amakusa Shirou is the only one surprised. It is a great wonder why he could not block an attack that he could have easily blocked.

"Master, why...?" His servant asked him in a mixture of shock and disbelief.

At that time they both remembered that their remaining allies had been seeing them a few feet away.

He did not respond. He might not need to answer, or maybe he not know the answer.

Archer released the hilt of his blade, his broken fingers unable to hold it any longer. His opponent stood still, with the Yin sword still thrust into his chest.

Even having reincarnated, it shouldn't be a problem for him to counter-attack. But, his hands are down, without any sign of movement. Archer knew without being told what that meant.

"I won, Amakusa Shirou." He made the statement as he looked into his eyes.

This one closed his eyes one time. "Yes. And I lost, King of Fakers." He murmured with his eyes looking in the distance.

The room was completely silent again. The conclusion of the battle between dreams had come to an abrupt end, and their minds had not yet finished processing it. All, except a certain writer.

"OOOOOOOOOHHH! Fascinating! Really fascinating! A really unexpected and shocking ending! The resolution forged for sixty years by my master at the end had no chance against a man who has been pursuing his impossible dream throughout his existence!"

Shakespeare was ignored again, but he kept writing things down in his book, his hand becoming blurred by the speed at which he wrote.

"Master, don't give up yet! Just give me the order and I'll finish them off!"

Semiramis was the first to react, and ran to Shirou, catching him before falling to the ground. His body finally began to succumb to his mortal wound.

With her concentration lost, the chains that bound Astolfo loosened, allowing him to free himself from them and regroup with his master and Ruler.

The three approached Archer, who remained barely standing as the blades held his legs steady, and stood guard against Assassin's hostile intentions. But Amakusa Shirou stopped his servant.

"Stop, Assassin!"

Semiramis still resisted his master's command. "Why do you surrender, master? Your desire, that for which you have been striving for sixty years, is about to be fulfilled! Now all we have to do is stand by and defend the Great Grail."

"You heard me. I lost. His determination to achieve his dream far surpassed mine. The only thing left for the loser is to take the leave. But..." His gaze turned to the Great Grail. "There is something I still want to witness. I can no longer stop the miracle of the salvation of mankind."

Everyone's expresions were filled with concern. Even if Archer haa defeated Amakusa Shirou, it would serve no purpose if they could not stop his desire already set in motion.

Then the winner of the conflict of ideals stepped forward. "Then I will do it. To stop a miracle, it will take another miracle. That's what you mean, isn't it?"

Amakusa Shirou nodded, and then everyone realized what they were both talking about. The true noble phantasm of Archer was the only thing that could stop the Great Grail. However...

"But that is now impossible. You have hardly any magical energy left to sustain your existence, let alone to use your sword." Jeanne said what everyone was thinking.

"There is still a way..." After those enigmatic words, Archer looked at the entrance to the room.

Everyone did as he, and right after that, the last two people who were missing there showed up. Gordes leapt from above the stairs to land next to them, while carrying a very pale and barely conscious Fiore.

"It seems that... we did not arrive in time... to see your servant... kick Amakusa Shirou's ass." The blond magus commented between gasps.

He seemed almost exhausted and he was all sweaty, so he must have been running at full speed the whole way

"That's because... you have a few extra pounds... When we get home... you're going to diet..." The man shuddered at Fiore's command, even in her pitiful state.

Ruler's eyes then opened when she realized what Archer meant. "I see. The command seals..." But she stopped as she looked closely at Archer's master's left hand.

There was no trace of any red mark there.

"Fiore, what happened to your command seals!?" Caules screamed at her full of concern.

"This... Well... since I wasn't going to get here in time... I used them to help Archer..."

"So, that's why he won-"

"No. You're wrong... I simply ordered him not to give up... and to continue pursuing his dream to the end... Things he'd already done... without me telling him... That was more like giving him my moral support..."

"But then, what do we do? If you no longer have command seals, Archer will not be able to use his noble phantasm."

"She's not the only one with command seals to command King of Fakers..." Amakusa Shirou's words made everyone look at the person he was referring to, Jeanne.

She clutched her hands to her chest. She already knew she was the only one who could do it, but she still avoided thinking it unconsciously. Even if giving that order meant winning this Great Holy Grail War, it would also mean something that she for some reason wanted to avoid.

It would be the final farewell. Archer and she would return to the throne of heroes, and they would probably never meet again. Moreover, that would also mean that Archer would return to his duties as counter guardian, and what the noble phantasm of Caster had shown her was still in her head.

"Come on, Jeanne. Say your command, and I will fulfill it as your sword." Archer's voice interrupted her thoughts.

There he was again, seeing himself as a tool to make others happy.

But after seeing that battle with Amakusa Shirou, she understood it completely. Those were his beliefs, and he would keep believing in his dream until the end.

Casting aside the pain in her heart, she proceeded to fulfill his will. "In the name of Ruler, Jeanne d'Arc, I command you with my command seals! King of Fakers, _save everyone_!"

Archer's dying body was immediately filled with power, and his golden sword appeared instantly in his hand. He closed his eyes, and lifted the crystallized miracle above his head.

Its warm and comforting light illuminated the whole place, as small particles of light began to float towards the blade. Some had already witnessed it, others had not, but they all agreed on one thing. It was not an impressive or powerful sword. It was simply beautiful.

With the energy already gathered, Archer opened his eyes and swung forward the sword of promised salvation.

The light bearing the hopes of all the people he saved throughtout his life was fired in the form of a beam that completely enveloped the Grail. There a huge pillar of light formed that destroyed the roof and reached the dawn sky.

The Great Grail disappeared into the pillar. As with Beast IV, it was sent to the reverse side of the world. A place that humans could not reach, and therefore, where the miracle of humanity's salvation could not be fulfilled.

The golden sword disappeared, and Archer watched as his body also began to fade. Without the Holy Grail, the servants could no longer maintain themselves on this plane of existence.

"I guess it's my turn to take the leave. It's been a pleasure fighting alongside all of you."

As Fiore, Sieg, and Astolfo bid him farewell, Jeanne remained silent. After witnessing that fight, she finally understood her feelings. Having made her decision, she approached Archer.

"Jeanne-" What he was going to say was cut when she put her hands on his cheeks and pressed her lips against his.

"HAH!" The collective scream of surprise was soon heard.

While Astolfo gave her a thumb up, Sieg looked at the situation without understanding, and Shakespeare increased his writing pace, reaching several pages per second.

"The holy maiden finally accepted her feelings and attacked head-on the massive density of her beloved! Damn it! I don't have enough time to record this whole story!

The kiss broke soon after. Jeanne gave a dazzling smile to Archer, who had been completely paralyzed. His brain tried to understand what just happened, but it couldn't and he went blank.

Still, Jeanne told him what she need to say, with a voice without regrets.

"I love you, King of Fakers. Even if we part now, no matter how much time passes, I will find you again, and I will keep loving you. I won't let you be alone anymore."

Without knowing how to respond to Jeanne's confession, Archer finally vanished.

* * *

With the Great Holy Grail War over, the Ygmillenia family broke down. Although the Magus Association stopped actively persecuting them due to the disappearance of the Holy Grail, the families that composed it were not very well seen. Gordes, Fiore and Caules returned to their respective families, and left the Yggmillenia fortress to the homunculi.

Despite all the difficulties, Fiore went ahead with her goal of improving the 'moon-lit world'. Her great talent got her a place in the Clock Tower, and she continued to fight with her brother's support despite having most families against them. Even under the pressure of the Barthomeloi family, she kept keeping that rusty grip. The catalyst they used to summon Archer, and the only link she had left to her precious servant.

Sieg set out on his journey around the world to protect humans, accompanied by his servant and friend Astolfo, who had managed to keep his contract because of his master's bast prana reserves. He followed the path he chose to the end and with no regrets, and Astolfo made sure that he did not have a lonely death like Archer's.

As for King of Fakers, as the last time, his memories of the war were mostly blurred. But one thing stuck in his memory.

That girl who said she loved him. Other than that it was his first kiss, for the first time he heard that someone loved him. His life was important to someone else, and now it has a meaning.

Despite his countless servitude as counter-guardian, he never forgot that, as well as that promise he made to that girl who was his master, and that boy who inherited his sword and promised to surpass him.

And as for Jeanne...

* * *

_Antarctica, unknown location. Chaldea Security Organization._

Jeanne breathed unconsciously a sigh. The person other side of the table, a woman with long silver hair and blue eyes, noticed and put on a comforting smile.

"Thinking about him again?"

She simply nodded in response. It had been several months since she had been summoned into the singularity of Orleans and had helped Chaldea's master to overcome her evil version that wanted to burn France.

Soon after, she was summoned here as part of the last resistance to the incineration of Human Order. A small part of her hoped to be reunited with the man she came to love, and she will continue to love, but he was not summoned in the singularity nor in Chaldea until today.

"Here are the cakes you ordered." The low voice of a man near them caught their attention, as a couple of plates of such cakes were placed in front of each.

Jeanne glanced sideways at the tall man with white hair combed back, steel grey eyes and tanned skin.

As soon as she was summoned here, she met this man and her heart turned when she thought she had finally met King of Fakers.

To her disappointment, this man and her beloved could not be more different. Although they both pursued the same dream, their endings were totally different. In fact, the end this man had was suspiciously very similar to what she saw inside Shakespeare's noble phantasm.

You could say they were both two sides of the same coin. The only thing they had in common was their appearance, and they both tended to complain about their E rank luck.

"No matter how much you look at me like that, I'm not gonna become him."

Jeanne couldn't help but blush and look away at the cake in front of her.

Right... Another difference was that he was a cynical, sarcastic bastard. And unlike King of Fakers, the man had experience dealing with women, which was sometimes annoying.

"Hey, Emiya, don't bother Jeanne like that." Marie came out in her defense, although the shaking of her shoulders didn't help much to disguise her contained laughter.

The man breathed a heavy sigh. "Although I don't like to admit it, if we're talking about preventing the extinction of humanity, he's the right man. Sooner or later he'll end up here, even if the goldie there doesn't like it."

His thumb pointed to the lone blond man sitting on a luxury sofa in the corner of the cafeteria.

The man stopped drinking from his glass of wine, and sent a look full of disdain to Emiya.

"Heh, having already one Faker here we do not need another. Besides, when I meet him again, I will erase his shameful existence."

"You're just upset because he beat the crap out of you in one of the Fuyuki Grail Wars, right?" The archer in a red cloak answered him with undisguised amusement.

"How dare you, mongrel!? You have exhausted the King's infinite patience! I shall destroy you right now." The murderous intent coming from Gilgamesh roared up, at the same time as Gate of Babylon opened behind him.

The situation became rather tense, but even so the others present in the cafeteria did not pay much attention, even the human staff of Chaldea.

It had already happened so many times, that everyone stopped paying attention to the occasional fights between the King of Heroes and EMIYA. Even Jeanne turned her attention to her cake and her conversation with Marie.

Anyway, the fight ended as quickly as it began when a low-height blonde woman with pale skin and golden eyes came between the two. She was wearing what she described as a cute gothic loli maid dress.

"King of Heroes, you're bothering the customers. If you don't want me to kick you out of here, you'd better behave properly."

To the surprise of some, the golden servant simply snapped his tongue and sat back down on his luxury couch.

But that was not the end of it. Saber Alter turned to look at EMIYA with terrifying eyes. "And where's the burger I asked for, Archer?"

He kept his composure, although everyone could see a chill running down his back.

"It's almost ready. Follow me to the kitchen."

When both servants left the scene, everyone in the cafeteria released the air they had been holding in their lungs without realizing it.

"A-anyway. I have good news for you Jeanne." Marie continued the conversation as if nothing of the above had happened.

"And that would be?"

"On the way here I passed by the command room, and heard that they have finally determined the date of the second singularity. It is located around the year 60, the time when the Roman Empire was ruled by Nero Claudius."

Jeanne's eyes widened upon hearing that. "That means..."

"Yes. According to the records we have, King of Fakers lived during that time."

* * *

**And here ends this story. Heh, **you certainly didn't expect** that last thing. You can take it as a link to the next story I plan to write. But we'll talk about that later.**

**First of all, it has been a pleasure to write this story with you, my readers. I thank you for all the support you gave me all this time. Even if they were just favs, follows or short reviews of "good chapter", I really appreciate it. This story got almost twice as many follows as the previous one, exceeding the two hundred mark, so I guess it could be considered an accomplishment.**

**Like I said previously, this was the first time I've written about romance, so I'd like to hear your honest opinion about what the pairing between King of Fakers and Jeanne was like. And well, it's been a year since I started writing in Fanfiction, so I'd like to know what you think about my writing, since no one has complained until now, but no one has said it's good either.**

**In this final I included many references to the route of Unlimited Blade Works, especially the final part of the fight between Amakusa Shirou and Archer, which is a tribute to the Shirou vs Archer of the visual novel.**

**And well, King of Fakers got his first kiss, leaving aside my parallel story. The good _"King of has stoped working"_ couldn't miss. The pairing will be maintained, as I endeavoured to make it at the request of most of you.**

**As for my next story, as you have seen in the little omake I left you at the end, it will be the second singularity, Eternal Madness Empire, that will change because King of Fakers will be present in this timeline. After this, as I put in my profile, we will move on to the seventh singularity, Absolutly Demonic Front: Babylon.**

**Now let's talk about the aspects of the story. It'll take a while to get out, since I played the singularity over a year ago and I'll have to at least see the cutscenes again. Besides I also have some things I haven't decided yet. Like, for example, should Chaldea's master be Gudao or Gudako? But more importantly, should other servants apart from Mash go with him/her to the singularity?**

**I know that in the current anime of FGO they didn't bring servants with them, and Ritsuka can only make contracts with the servants that already are in the singularity. But, in the game it is never clear if the servants go to singularity, in the first part of the game. In Epic of Remnant there are servants who travel with you to the singularity, but most of them for some reason or another end up lost or even being your enemies, as is the case with Heracles/Megalos. And in the events also appear servants of Chaldea.**

**There is also the issue of the inconsistency that Nero, being a living person, can fight equally against servants. But for this I have more or less a solution related to the changes of the timeline itself.**

**And well, if you've come this far, well, all I can do is thank you for taking the time to listen to my ramblings.**

**With this I bid farewell. I'll see you in the next story, or if you follow my crossover with Date a Live, the next thing I update will be the next chapter of that story.**


End file.
